Formans Familia
by Michally
Summary: AU at the end of OOTP. Harry has been hiding what he really is capable of for years, after a strange occurrence in the DOM he gains a family and gets the opportunity he needs to change the world. Independent!Harry, Powerful!Harry, Creature!Harry.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

A few things before the story starts. This is mostly AU from the Order of the Phoenix. Also in this Harry Potter World, Hogwarts' students start at the age of 12 instead of 11.

This is a creature fic, and an mpreg fic, and has some slight Dom/sub creature instincts. These are all things that my sister hates in a story, so I won't be at all offended if you don't read this. It also has Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Molly bashing.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes, but they won't be posted of fanfic.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks also to GhostxWriter without whom this story wouldn't be nearly as smooth or mistake free.

Thanks for reading

1-1-1

Lucius Malfoy sighed. This was not the kind of mission that the Dark Lord normally assigned to his inner circle. They were hiding in the Department Of Mysteries waiting for a teenage boy to arrive. When he did arrive, they would threaten him to hand over the Prophecy Orb and leave with the it – preferably with no casualties on either side. Lucius understood why he was here – now that the Dark Lord had regained his sanity it was especially important that they knew the contents of the prophecy – but that did not mean that he was enjoying himself.

At the signal, they moved out of hiding and into Potter's line of sight for the charade to begin. The second Lucius saw Potter he felt his heart rate speed up. It was all he could do not to start preening and baring his neck. He had found his mate. His mate, the one that he had been waiting for ever since he came into his creature inheritance twenty five years ago.

As he stood staring at Potter, fighting his urge to bare his neck, he felt Rodolphus elbow him in the side; he was supposed to be threatening Potter for the prophecy.

He couldn't do it. He couldn't bully his mate, his dominant mate, the one he was longing for to look after and care for him. He shot Rodolphus a significant look and slid to the back of the group. Rodolphus looked confused, but nevertheless moved to the front of the group to begin his intimidation of Potter.

But, throughout the confrontation with Rodolphus, Potter continued to stare at Lucius with a predatory gaze. As Lucius met his eyes, despite the voice in his head screaming at him to bare his neck, he felt a flicker of Legilimency and as though his shields were nonexistent, he heard Potter's voice in his head.

"_You may run for now little one, but I will claim you soon."_ And with that Potter's eyes moved over to Rodolphus as he continued the conversation.

Lucius stared at his mate; how had he known? Potter was only sixteen – he wouldn't come into his inheritance until his birthday. Without his inheritance he would have to be an incredibly powerful and disciplined wizard to recognise his mate. Which made no sense, because Potter had never shown any kind of extraordinary power levels or magical discipline. Even now as the first curses began to fly all he was shooting were averagely powered stunner and expelliarmus spells. As Lucius dodged a spell he shoved all his thoughts to the back of his mind and started sending back low level curses towards the teenagers. This was the hard part; they had to look like they were actually trying to kill the teenagers while ensuring that none of them actually got hurt.

Nothing to consequence happened during the battle, except for Bellatrix forgetting that the fight was supposed to be casualty free and sending her cousin through the Veil. In hindsight, Bella should never have been chosen for this mission. She had become more insane and unstable since Azkaban.

The battle ended with Fudge and his Aurors bursting in and the Death Eaters using a portkey to retreat. The minute Lucius' portkey landed at Riddle manor, he strode away, he needed to think.

He had found his mate. His mate was Harry Potter. His mate was somehow powerful and disciplined enough to recognise Lucius as his soul mate without his creature inheritance. And his mate had, somehow, hidden his power and control from everyone for five years. Lucius smiled; he had found his mate – his mate recognised him and wanted to claim him. He wouldn't be alone for much longer. Soon his mate would look after and take care of him.

As Lucius hid in a comfy armchair in the back corner of the Riddle library, he considered how his life would change after his mate claimed him. He would finally be able to divorce Narcissa. He'd had evidence of her infidelity for years now, but hadn't had the strength to go through with leaving her. Draco wouldn't mind the divorce; Narcissa had never been there for her son, as she had always been more interested in the latest fashion and parties or her latest conquest.

As a submissive creature Lucius had in reality, been Draco's mother figure; and when Lucius had mated with Harry, Draco's creature and magic would recognise Harry as his father figure. That could complicate things. He would have to warn Draco that he was about to gain a father figure that was actually younger than him...

"Lucius? Are you in here?" Lucius sighed; he should have known the Rodolphus would come after him.

"I'm back here, Rodolphus." Rodolphus had been a good friend while they had been at Hogwarts, and their friendship had only grown after they had both been trapped into loveless marriages with the Black sisters.

Rodolphus came around the last bookshelf and conjured himself an armchair across from Lucius' chair. He also conjured a small table and called a House Elf for tea. Only after the tea had been served did he look up at Lucius.

"What happened tonight? It isn't like you to bow out like that."

"He's my mate, Rodol, I couldn't ... I – it was hard enough to stand there on the opposing side and not bare my neck to him. I couldn't oppose him. He recognised me as his mate as well and promised to claim me." Lucius smiled.

One of Rodolphus' eyebrows rose, "Potter is your mate?" As Lucius inclined him head in agreement he continued, "I thought Potter was only sixteen? How could he recognise you as his mate?"

Lucius shrugged.

"That would mean that he is much more than he appears." Rodolphus continued, "We should ask Severus about him. He's the one who sees him every day. You say he spoke to you? How? It certainly wasn't verbal."

"I heard him in my head, it felt like legilimency but it was as if my shields were non-existent. Do you really think we should ask Severus? He hates Harry, besides if he knew something was off about Harry's abilities surely he would have mentioned it all those times he was ranting about him. What if he decides he doesn't want to be friends with me because of Harry?"

Rodolphus smiled, "Harry, huh?" He laughed at the blush that spread across Lucius face. "Luc, I promise you that Severus won't stop being your friend over Potter. Severus isn't like that. You know he cares for you; your relationship with Potter won't change that."

He sighed as he watched Lucius take his lip between his teeth and start to nibble on it nervously. Normally Lucius portrayed a very dominant and dignified Lord, no one except a few of his closest friends and his son realised how hard it was for him to uphold that image. It went against every creature instinct he had, all of which wanted him to be protected and cared for by his dominant. But, a few years after he came into his inheritance, Lucius had realised that without a dominant mate to care for him, he needed to step up and take control of his life. These days it was very rare that Lucius let his walls down even among his friends, and yet the knowledge that he had a mate coming for him had managed to do it easily.

1-1-1

Severus Snape sighed as he looked around the Grimmauld Place kitchen at what was supposed to be a debriefing of the 'Department of Mysteries Fiasco' as he had internally dubbed it. Half of the teenagers that had been involved in the night weren't present, not that he wanted them there, but did wonder why Granger and the youngest Weasleys were present and Potter wasn't. Neither were Longbottom or that Lovegood girl, now that he thought about it.

"I have discussed the prophecy with Harry," Severus's gaze spun to the Headmaster in disbelief. _What?_

"And I was very disappointed with how he reacted." Dumbledore continued sadly, "He destroyed all the instruments in my office, including the ones monitoring his health and location."

Inwardly Severus smirked; well at least Potter's temper tantrums where good for something. His Lord would be very pleased, as was Severus; he knew that several of those instruments had been keeping tabs on him. But what on earth had Dumbledore been thinking telling Potter about the prophecy not an hour after he had lost his Godfather? No scratch that, what had Dumbledore been thinking telling the Potter brat about the prophecy at the age of sixteen? He listened as Dumbledore droned on about all the reasons why he had decided to tell the boy.

"He needed to know, it will give him meaning to go on after the death of his Godfather," Dumbledore explained, "besides he is old enough to know his part in this war."

Severus sighed. Translation, Potter was getting to the age where he might become interested in romance and his future and Dumbledore thought he needed to understand that he was simply a weapon whose responsibility was to defeat the Dark Lord. Dumbledore also thought that telling the boy immediately after his Godfather's death would ensure that he would be determined to become the best weapon possible to avenge his beloved Sirius.

Severus ignored Dumbledore and instead watched the Order members present for the meeting. Lupin seemed devastated at the loss of Black; Tonks seemed to be hopeful that the death of Black would make the wolf more open to her advances, how crass. The Weasley twins were whispering to one another in the corner, their mother hadn't lost the disapproving scowl that had appeared on her face when Dumbledore mentioned Potter's tantrum. Severus sighed again. Wasn't seven children – the half of whom were nasty brats – enough for the woman? Did she need to take control of another child's life as well? Shacklebolt was frowning at Dumbledore, as was the oldest Weasley son.

Turning his attention back to Dumbledore, he listened as the teenagers were questioned about the night's events before the Order had arrived. Granger answered first, obviously; the girl loved the sound of her voice.

"Well sir, Harry had a vision during his History exam. He told us that he saw You-Know-Who torturing Sirius in the Department of Mysteries and wanted to go save him. I warned him that it was probably a trap, but he refused to listen to me. He told us that he didn't care if it was a trap, that if there was even the slightest chance that he could save Sirius it was worth the risk."

"Attention seeking bastard." The Weasley boy muttered angrily. Severus strengthened his Occlumency shields in shock; he had thought Potter and Weasley were friends. He looked around and realised that no one looked surprised at Weasley's outburst. In fact only Lupin, Shacklebolt, the eldest Weasley son and the Weasley twins seemed to disagree with the statement. Maybe he should attend more Order meetings, since when did they all hate Potter?

"He didn't want us to go with him," Granger continued, "But you told us to always make sure that at least one of us was with him at all times so we had to go along. He tried to get Professor Snape to help, but he didn't help at all."

"Bloody Death Eater!" Weasley snarled and Severus rolled his eyes. Really? Couldn't the boy come up with an original insult?

"Ginny came because we thought that in a dangerous situation there should be as many of us there to make sure Harry didn't do anything stupid. Then Neville and Luna decided that they were going to come and help. I don't know why, it's not like Harry's even their friend."

"Loony and the squib, as if they could ever help!" Severus raised his eyebrows at that. Admittedly Longbottom was shy and absolutely useless in potions, but he had been told that that he had gained a lot of confidence and skill in the last year, and that Lovegood was very magically capable.

"We flew to the Ministry on Thestrals, and made our way into the Department of Mysteries. We couldn't see Sirius anywhere, but Harry still wanted us to search for him. Then Harry found the Prophecy Orb with his name on it, and about ten Death Eaters turned up. At first Mr. Malfoy was at the front of the group, but then he moved back and another man – I think he's one of the ones who escaped from Azkaban – talked to Harry and tried to get the Orb off him.."

Severus tuned her out,Lucius had moved back? That was incredibly unlike him. His public persona, which after many years of practice was almost constant, wouldn't have ever stepped back like that. And he certainly wouldn't have allowed anyone else to take control of a mission he was in charge of. What was wrong with Lucius?

Severus was rather protective of his friend. He had been there the first few years after Lucius' creature inheritance when he had still been incredibly submissive, expecting to find a dominant mate to care for and look after him. He and Rodolphus had both done their best to protect their friend through that time when everyone, from Narcissa to the shop assistant at _Borgin and Burkes_ had taken advantage of Lucius' meek nature. After a while, they had helped Lucius to build such a strong dominant public persona to protect himself that everyone forgot that he had once been a doormat. What could have happened that had caused Lucius to drop his persona at such a crucial time? Suddenly the Order meeting seemed endless as he impatiently waited for Dumbledore to give him permission to leave. He needed to ensure that Lucius was alright.

1-1-1

Lucius was still sitting at the back of the library – alone again. Both he and Rodolphus had been summoned for a debriefing of the night's events, but Lucius had asked Rodolphus to make his apologies to the Dark Lord. He knew that though the Dark Lord would demand an explanation, he would understand Lucius' need to miss the meeting. Now that he had met his mate and had his persona ripped to shreds, he just wanted to hide until he was claimed by his mate.

Besides there were so many things he needed to consider. How would Severus react to Lucius' mate being Harry? Would Severus be upset? Would he break off their friendship? Or would he support him through it? Maybe if Severus got to know Harry he would like him. He also needed to consider the war. He and Harry were on opposite sides, and he knew that, as the dominant mate, it was Harry's decision what Lucius did with his life. He was thrilled to finally have a mate that would make those kind of decisions for him, but all his friends were on the Dark side, even the Dark Lord was a friend – though not as close as Severus and Rodolphus. Would Harry require him to defect to the light side? Things were just so complicated.

"Lucius? Where are you?" Lucius' heart sped up. Oh Merlin, what if Severus didn't want to be friends anymore? He didn't have his persona up and if Severus got angry with him he would probably cry. Some days he really hated his submissive hormones.

"Lucius? Are you here?"

"Back here, Severus." Lucius took a few deeps breaths and made a last ditch effort to pull his strong persona back on. It didn't work, he just wanted to curl into a ball and have a mate to hold him.

1-1-1

Severus walked towards the back of the library towards where he had heard Lucius' voice. The Riddle library had been one of the first places he had looked for Lucius. He knew that Lucius enjoyed the comfort and quiet in this library. It was rare that he found it at home. Malfoy Manor was Narcissa' domain, that cold manipulative bitch. She had been taking advantage of Lucius' submissive nature since their bonding. And though Lucius had become better at standing up for himself, she had trained him too well in the first years of their relationship for him to ever go against her.

Severus still hadn't figured out what could have happened to Lucius for him to step back in the confrontation with Potter. He had stopped worrying though, telling himself that Rodolphus would have cared for Lucius and that by now he would be all sorted out. But as he came around the last bookcase and saw Lucius sitting in an armchair looking vulnerable, his worrying started all over again. Where was Rodolphus? And why was Lucius still this shaken up?

"Good evening, Severus." Lucius started with a timid smile, "How are you?"

"I am well thank you, Lucius, how are you? I have been worried about you."

"Worried about me? Whatever for, Severus? I am fine as you see, a little vulnerable I will admit, though you can probably see that as well." Lucius trailed off, "Won't you sit down, Sev? I'm afraid that when Rodol left he vanished the chair he had conjured, but I am sure you can conjure one just as well, if not better. You were always very good at conjuring, weren't you? Would you like some tea? I'm afraid that it has gone cold and I shall have to send for some more, and a new cup for you as well I suppose..." He trailed off again.

Severus sighed it was worse than he had thought. He hadn't seen Lucius this unsure of himself in years. Whatever could have happened?

"Tea would be lovely thank you, Luc." Severus conjured a chair for himself and sat down, only continuing after Lucius had ordered the tea from a House Elf. "I have just come from the Order's debriefing of this evening's activities. I was told that you were there. From the accounts I heard you didn't seem quite yourself. Not that any of them noticed." He added quickly as Lucius looked worried.

"Yes, I was there. As was Rodol. It was wonderful to be working with him again, almost like old times."

"I take it that Rodol was the man the Granger chit described as stepping forward and threatening Potter in your place?"

Lucius inclined his head in agreement.

"I am concerned, Luc. You haven't had a reaction like that in public in ten years. What on earth happened tonight?"

"I...Well that is to say ... I mean ... Rodol! How was the meeting?" Lucius exclaimed in relief as he saw his friend come around the corner.

Rodolphus conjured another chair and sat down as he answered.

"It went well, though you were missed. I explained to the Dark Lord that you would give your explanation at a later time and he accepted that. He wasn't pleased that the prophecy was destroyed, but no one was punished for it. He was furious at Bella for killing Black though; it's strange to see him so upset at someone's death. Bella has been put in the dungeons until the Dark Lord decides what he wants done with her. He sees her as a liability. I admit that I certainly won't miss her if he disposes of her." He took the tea that Lucius had poured for him.

"And how are you doing, Luc? Have you explained the situation to Severus?" He looked between them taking in Severus' confused and concerned expression and Lucius worrying his lower lip – again. "I'm going to guess that answer is no. Luc, you have to tell him. You are going to have to tell the Dark Lord in the next few days anyway and Severus deserves to know first. You know this. It'll be fine, Luc, Severus won't be angry and he won't yell. Will you, Severus?"

Severus almost jumped as Rodolphus' cajoling tone took a hard edge as he looked pointedly at Severus.

"Of course I won't, Luc!"

Lucius however, still looked unconvinced as he fidgeted nervously.

"Come on, Lucius, remember my promise earlier? There is no way that Severus would renounce your friendship over this."

This time Severus did move. He moved off his chair to kneel by Lucius, taking his hand.

"That's what you're worried about? I promise, Luc, nothing you could tell me will end our friendship! Nothing!" He pulled Lucius now bruised lip out of his teeth. "You're scaring me, Luc, I've never seen you like this before. What happened? Whatever it is I promise we will always be friends."

"You promise?" Lucius asked in a small voice.

"I promise."

When Lucius still didn't produce any details Severus looked helplessly at Rodolphus.

"How about this? Severus will sit back down in his seat, and I will explain the details to him? Does that seem reasonable, Lucius?"

At Lucius' slight nod, Severus moved back to his chair and looked expectantly at Rodolphus.

"Severus," Rodolphus started, "Tonight at the Department of Mysteries, Lucius finally found his mate. However, the identity of his mate is not exactly who you would expect and that is the cause of Lucius' behaviour at the moment."

Severus was relieved and delighted. "Your mate! Lucius, that's wonderful! After all these years ... your mate. But who..?" He thought through the options. People who were there tonight, people who Lucius obviously hadn't spend time with if he hadn't recognised his mate before now so that left the Order members. But according to the account Severus had heard, Lucius had stepped back before the Order arrived. Someone that would upset Severus enough that Lucius thought he would end their friendship; that he would choose his hatred over the fact that this person was his friend's mate. Oh Merlin! But that meant ... He took a deep breath and tried to console himself to the idea.

"I take it your mate is Potter, Luc?" When he received a nod, he took another deep breath and nodded back. Alright, he could deal with this. He practically swallowed his tongue as he forced himself to say, "Congratulations Lucius! I admit that it will take some getting used to, having Potter in the family, but I am very happy for you, Luc. I swear to you, our friendship is far more important to me than my hatred of Potter."

He watched as Lucius looked at him with hopeful eyes that were quickly filling with tears and then shot a panicked look at Rodolphus.

"It's alright, Sev, I think these are happy tears."

Lucius sniffled and nodded.

1-1-1

ument here...


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

A few things before the story starts. This is mostly AU from the Order of the Phoenix. Also in this Harry Potter World, Hogwarts' students start at the age of 12 instead of 11.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks also to GhostxWriter without whom this story wouldn't be nearly as smooth or mistake free as it currently is.

Thanks for reading

2-2-2

Tom Riddle strode into his office. What a horrible meeting. He hated discussing failed plans with his followers and the evening had certainly not gone to plan. The first part had worked perfectly, Potter had arrived at the Department of Mysteries and had picked up the Prophecy Orb. But then the Orb was destroyed, Black died, Dumbledore arrived and he had stupidly decided to possess Potter. No, the evening had definitely not gone to plan and now he felt as though things were twice as complicated as they had been twelve hours ago.

When he had possessed the Potter boy he had expected to find a normal teenage mind, much like the one he had been connected to. That was not the case. Potters mind was amazingly organised. The average wizards mind normally felt like a jungle, no order just a lot of thoughts and ideas growing everywhere. Tom only knew of six wizards with a mind as organised as Potter's, himself and Dumbledore included. Additionally he had the feeling that the only reason why he had managed to possess Potter's mind was because Potter himself had allowed him to.

What had happened to the undisciplined mind that he had been invading over the last year? The one he had sent the fake vision too? It didn't make sense. Unless every single one of his followers who had encountered Potter was lying to him; Potter was pretending to be much less than he was and was incredibly good at it.

He remembered the words he had heard in his mind while possessing Potter, 'We need to talk Tom. I will owl you.'

The boy had called him Tom. He moved to stand in front of the mirror that hung over the fire. Admittedly, he was more Tom now than he was Voldemort, but Potter couldn't possibly know that. The glamour he had worn was infallible.

Tom stared at his reflection. Up until a few months earlier his face hadn't been human in appearance since he was twenty-seven. To now be able to look in the mirror and see the reflection of a wizard in his seventies was both pleasing and disconcerting.It was nice see brown eyes staring back at him instead of red, to feel human skin under his fingers - he brushed a hand over his cheek in sheer amazement. He felt human again - being able to breathe like one through his nose also helped. A wizard in his seventies was barely approaching middle age - a fact he was very glad of. It meant his body was still strong and limber, and his hair was barely beginning to grey at the temples.

Tom sat in his chair in front of the fire and frowned pensively. As pleased as he was to have a human appearance again, everything seemed to be becoming more and more complicated. Things had been so much easier when he simply wanted to kill Potter.

2-2-2

Harry Potter sat in the corner of the Gryffindor Common room under cover of his invisibility cloak and a notice-me-not spell. He was waiting for Ron and Hermione to return from the Order meeting. Ron and Hermione couldn't do subtle if they tried and when they returned from the meetings. They liked to sit on their favourite couch and discuss everything that had happened at the meeting. So Harry would hide himself within hearing distance and listen in, they were a great source of information.

Technically he wasn't supposed to know that they went to the Order meetings, but then he wasn't supposed to know that they were only pretending to be his friend either – and he had known that since the end of second year.

His meeting with Dumbledore had been irritating to say the least, the old man never failed to piss him off, but at least he had gained important information. He hadn't even known there was a prophecy before, and everything made much more sense now. Besides, if Voldemort did want the prophecy as badly as Dumbledore seemed to think he did, well that could be a very helpful peace offering or bargaining chip.

Harry stilled as he heard the portrait door open and made sure than the spells on him where still strong. He heard Ron before he saw them.

"I don't know why Mione. Why does the greasy git do anything? He probably had a potion that needed stirring or something. Either that or Voldemort called him to help him get his rocks off." Ron sniggered. "Can you imagine Snape on his knees, having his face fucked by You Know Who? What I wouldn't give to be able to see that."

"Ronald Bilius Weasley what a horrible image to get stuck in my head. Your probably right though. About the potion you idiot!" She huffed as he started sniggering again. "Anyway! I can't believe Harry destroyed all of Professor Dumbledore's instruments. You would think that by the end of fifth year even he would have enough control over his magic to prevent that."

Harry grinned. He had destroyed all of them? And Dumbledore had truly believed that it was accidental magic? That was fantastic! A good days work.

"That weak, arrogant git? Course he hasn't! Not that that's a bad thing mind you." Ron shared a sly glance with Hermione, then glanced up as Andrew Kirke, seventh year prefect, came through the portrait hole.

"Still up you two? You should both head to bed it really late?"

"What's it to you if we stay up late?" Ron sneered. "You're up late too. Besides we're prefects as well, you can't tell us what to do!"

Andrew raised an eyebrow at Ron unimpressed. "I'm only up because I just finished my rounds, and I think you will find that as a seventh year prefect I am very much allowed to tell two measly fifth year prefects what to do." He smirked. "Chop chop, off to bed."

When he gave no sign that he was going to leave them be, both Ron and Hermione stomped up to their dormitories with scowls on their faces.

Harry cursed silently. He had gotten next to no information what so ever. He waited until Andrew had headed up to his bed and then started heading up the stairs himself. At least he now knew he had broken _all_ of Dumbledore's instruments. He estimated that gave him two weeks without tracking charms on him before Dumbledore managed to get them repaired, and even then the headmaster would have to find him to reapply them. He smirked, oh the things he could do in two weeks.

2-2-2

The next morning Harry woke up, early as usual, and went through is daily exercises. Meditation, magical control, push-ups, sit ups and flexibility stretches. Normally he would pretend to sleep for another half an hour and then wake and go down to breakfast with Ron, but this morning he figured that the death of Sirius gave him the excuse he needed to go down earlier. If Ron or Hermione berated him about it he could give then a exhausted almost in tears look and just tell then that he hadn't slept well and needed some time to mourn.

When he reached the dining hall he wasn't surprised to find that while at least twenty other students having breakfast at the other tables, he was the only Gryffindor in sight. He sat down and served himself some fruit salad observing the other houses. Malfoy was sitting at the Slytherin table. Harry stared at him for a moment, he had completely forgotten that Lucius Malfoy was his mate.

When he had seen him the previous night it had seemed as though his magic was singing with joy at having found his soul mate. He was still surprised by the identity of his submissive mate. The fact that he was dominant wasn't a surprise, but the fact that Lucius Malfoy was submissive was.

The way Malfoy had reacted to him, shrinking towards the back of the death eaters and baring his neck before he caught himself, made Harry suspect that Lucius had creature blood. Which meant that Harry probably did as well. Well that was alright. He could handle that, though he should probably look up what creatures the Potter family had in their history.

His gaze returned to Malfoy and their eyes caught. Malfoy bared his neck for a second and then, seemingly remembering himself, he quickly covered up the movement. Harry mentally raised his eyebrows and he went back to his bowl of fruit, well that made sense. Malfoy - he supposed he should probably call him Draco from now on as they were soon to be family - had been acting strange for two weeks now. He had avoided Harry in the halls and when they did meet had ignored him, refusing even to respond to Ron's taunts. A couple of times Harry and caught him staring and when their eyes had met Draco had blushed and quickly ducked his head. After Draco's birthday a few weeks ago he must have recognised Harry as his father's dominant mate and therefore family. But not just family Harry mused, according to Draco's creature Harry was his father, while Lucius was his bearer, or mother.

Harry stood and walked out of the Great Hall motioning with his head for Draco to follow him. He stopped just out of the hall and when Draco arrived then them to a large but hidden alcove.

"Draco." He greeted.

"Harry." Draco returned evenly.

"I saw your Father last night," Harry said watching Draco's face, "And I came to a rather interesting realisation."

"Oh?" Draco seemed to be trying to look both disinterested and oblivious, he was failing at both.

"Yes. I imagine I will be seeing quite a bit of you after my birthday." Draco seemed to have given up trying to appear unaware of what Harry was telling him, he nodded.

"Draco," Harry paused, "If you ever need anything, even before my birthday, know that you can come to me." He held Draco's gaze until he nodded. "What kind of creature blood do you have?"

"Veela." Draco's cool disinterested façade seemed to have dropped entirely and now he looked shy and unsure.

Harry mentally ran through what he knew about Veelas. They had studied them briefly with Professor Lupin in third year, and then when Fleur was around in fourth year Harry had done some extra reading.

He put a charm on the entrance to the alcove to stop people from seeing in or entering, and then conjured a two seater couch. Sitting down he motioned for Draco to do the same and then pulled him into his side. It felt strange holding his school rival against his side and even stranger as Draco started to relax and snuggle against him. Harry was sure that when he came into his creature inheritance this would feel normal and instinctual, but until then he was just acting out of knowledge rather than instinct

Young Veelas needed to be held by both their father and bearer the first year after coming into their inheritance, especially submissive ones. The last two weeks must have been very hard for Draco without any physical contact from either him or Lucius particularly since, if Draco's snuggling was anything to go by, he was a submissive Veela.

Harry continued to hold Draco in silence until the end of the breakfast hour. By then the weirdness had worn off and it felt nice to have someone cuddled up against him.

"Draco? Come on, we have to go. Breakfast is over and we both need to find our friends and then get onto the train home."

When Draco sat up, Harry smoothed out his hair for him and then smiled at Draco.

"Harry? May I call you Père? I mean only if you want to? It's alright if you don't," Draco rushed, "I mean, I understand that this is weird for you and..."

Harry growled, "Draco! Shush." He sighed when Draco bared his neck and let out a whimper of apology. "It's alright, I'm not upset. You may call me Père if you wish, just not around anyone who doesn't know yet alright? I have some things I have to sort out first." He straightened Draco's uniform. "Now we need to leave now, you go first. Remember that if you need anything you can contact me, and tell your father that I will see him on the thirty first of July. Off you go Draco."

He took down the charm on the entrance to the alcove and watched as Draco squared his shoulders and strode out, waiting a few minutes before following him. Was it just him? Or had his life gotten infinitely more complicated?

2-2-2

The train ride back to London was very long. Ron and Hermione had been upset at him for going down to breakfast without them, and after he had explained about wanting time grieve for Sirius they tried to make him talk about it.

It wasn't that Harry wasn't sad to have lost Sirius, he was. Sirius had been his last real connection to his parents. He knew that, logically, Professor Lupin was a link as well but – unlike Sirius – Lupin had no excuse for ignoring Harry the majority of his life and Harry just couldn't forgive him for that. He would miss Sirius, but realistically he had only known him for two years and had barely seen him in all that time. Besides, he got the feeling that Sirius' love for him was more centred on his devotion to James than on Harry himself, and Harry already had enough people loving him for his name.

Draco hadn't made his customary appearance, which Harry was glad about. He wasn't sure how he could have managed to avoid suspicion from Ron and Hermione while not upsetting Draco. By the time the train reached London, Harry was very ready for some time without any Gryffindors around.

When Harry stepped of the train he subtly searched the crowd for Lucius while heading towards the Order members with Ron and Hermione. He didn't notice Lucius until after he had reached the Order members and been pulled into an awkward and smothering hug from Molly. He met Lucius' gaze and held it until Lucius lowered his eyes and subtly bared his neck. Then, with an encouraging nod, he smiled towards him and followed the Order members out to the muggle part of the train station to meet Vernon.

He stood back slightly irritated as the others threatened Vernon, though he supposed it would make his job easier. He and the Dursleys studiously ignored each other for the entire trip back to Privet Drive. Once they arrived he carried his trunk inside and then followed Vernon into the lounge.

"Uncle Vernon? I need to talk to you." Harry decided to ignore his Uncles glare and continued. "My parents left me some money you see." He carried on quickly, stalling his Uncle from exploding and demanding all the money, "And I was thinking that maybe this year instead of paying for my board through chores, I could pay you in money. I can give you three thousand pounds for the summer, and then another thousand pounds at the end if I feel you have been reasonable."

Harry watched with satisfaction as Vernon's face quickly changed from angry to agreeable. As his Uncle agreed to Harry's terms he felt like crowing, it had worked.

Harry carried his trunk up to his room where Hedwig was waiting for him and sat down to write a letter.

_Tom Riddle_

_Greetings to you, I hope this letter finds you in good health._

_I am sure that by now you will have considered the events that occurred the night of the 18__th__ of June and have concluded that there is much you do not know about me. I am equally sure that there is much I do not know about you, as my only sources have been Albus Dumbledore and the members of his Order._

_I suggest that the two of us meet at a neutral location and spend some time coming to understand one another better. I suspect we might be surprised at how much we have in common._

_It is my suggestion, that if you are amendable, we meet at the Abundantes Divitias Restaurant in Muggle London at 1pm June 25th. I have made reservations in the hope that you will join me for lunch._

_Hedwig will wait for your response._

_Yours Sincerely_

_Harry James Potter_

_Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter _

After sending Hedwig with the letter Harry started to unpack his trunk and pulled out his summer homework.

2-2-2

Lucius anxiously looked over the crowded platform as the Hogwarts students clambered out of the train and ran towards their families. As pleased as he would be to see his son, he was desperate to see his mate. He had been without a mate for so many years and he needed to reassure himself that he hadn't imagined the events of the previous evening.

When he finally found his mate in the crowd, Harry was standing beside a swarm of red heads. Lucius sneered, Weasleys. He was startled as Harry met his gaze and Lucius could do nothing but lower his eyes and bare his neck in submission. The smile and nod he received for the gesture had him feeling overwhelmed with pleasure as he watched as his mate left the platform.

"Good afternoon Father!"

Lucius turned to look at Draco who was now standing in front of him. "Good afternoon Draco, I trust you are well?"

Draco looked more than well, he looked positively radiant. He seemed to be barely holding in a great deal of excitement and Lucius was very curious as to what could have caused such a reaction from his son. It had been two weeks since Draco's inheritance and without any contact from his parents he should have been emotionally frail.

"Yes thank you Father. I am very well. I spent some extremely comforting time with Père this morning and.."

"Père?" Lucius' eyes widened minutely and as he watched his son barely refraining from bouncing he decided they would continue this conversation at home. A Malfoy never bounced in public.

"Draco I think this conversation should be continued in privacy. Grab onto your trunk." When Draco had done so he wrapped his arms around his son and apparated them both to Malfoy manor.

When they arrived and a House Elf had taken Draco's trunk to his room, Lucius decided that he would take Draco to his spot in the Library at Riddle Manor, he didn't want Narcissa to interrupt this conversation. Wrapping his arms around his son again he apparated them both to Riddle Manor. He strode towards the library, with Draco following him, he stopped as his name was called out and quickly turned with a bow when he realised it was the Dark Lord.

"Lucius you seem to spend a good deal of your time here, should I have the House Elves set up a room here for you? Is your own manor infested with some kind of unsanitary pest that is proving hard to dispose of?" He questioned with a smirk. Lucius suspected that the Dark Lord knew exactly the reason he avoided his manor so often. "Ah, I see you have your son with you also, perhaps two rooms?"

"Thank you my Lord, but that won't be necessary. Forgive me if I have overstayed my welcome."

"Not at all Lucius, if you had I wouldn't have offered to allow you to stay. If there is anything I can do to help you with your pest problem please let me know." The Dark Lord smirked again.

"Thank you my Lord that is very generous of you. I don't believe you have met my son before. My Lord, this is my son and heir, Draconis Malfoy." Lucius was pleased to see that Draco's bow was appropriately deep and graceful, he had taught his son well.

"It is a pleasure to meet you young Malfoy." The Dark Lord nodded. "I should be very interesting in conversing with you, perhaps later in the summer? I am sure your Father is very much looking to spending sometime with you first. I shall leave you to catch up with your son Lucius. I expect I shall see you this evening, at nine, for a explanation of last nights events."

"Of course, my Lord." Lucius and Draco both bowed again before making their way towards the library.

Once Lucius had led his son to his corner to the library and conjured a couch for them. He sat down, pulled Draco onto his lap and smiled as his Veela purred with delight as Draco snuggled into him.

"So Draco you were telling me about your Père?" He raised an eyebrow questionably even though he knew that Draco couldn't see it.

"Lucius? Are you in here? Rastaban told me he saw you come in here? I thought you were supposed to be picking Draco up from the... Oh." Rodolphus rounded the last bookcase and stopped as he saw Lucius and Draco on the couch. "Sorry Luc, I'll go.."

"Rodol? Why did you stop? Oh, Good afternoon Lucius, Draco."

Lucius sighed at the appearance of both Rodolphus and Severus, he wanted to know who this Père was. He had his suspicions but at the same time it didn't make sense. Harry and Draco were rivals going on enemies, surely he couldn't have gotten over all that hate in just one night, particularly since Harry shouldn't have gone through his inheritance yet. Then again none of this made sense. He grunted as Draco elbowed him in the side in an effort to stand and hug his Uncles.

"Uncle Rodol! It's so wonderful to see you again, I have missed you. Uncle Sev, I haven't missed you at all, especially with all those nasty potions essays you have been assigning us."

The adults laughed as Draco made himself comfortable again snuggled up against his father and the newcomers conjured themselves chairs.

"I presume everyone would appreciate some tea?" Lucius called a House Elf and ordered them all drinks. "Draco was telling me about something that happened at school this morning. Why don't you start at the beginning for your Uncle's sake, Draco, and I will pour the tea."

Draco sat up and looked eagerly at his Uncles. "I was telling Father about the amazing time I spent with Père this morning." He seemed to bounce in his seat. "It was wonderful! At first I wasn't sure what was happening when signalled he wanted to meet me, cause we're rivals you know, but then he pulled us into an alcove and we talked for a while. He said that he had seen you last night Father, and I wondered if he knew that he was your mate, but then he seemed to. And he told me that if I ever needed anything I could always ask him. And then he asked me what sort of creature blood we have, so I told him."

Draco twisted around to look at Lucius. "That is alright isn't it Father? I know that normally you say never to tell anyone about it, but he's your mate and I couldn't exactly tell him no."

At Lucius' startled nod Draco continued on with his story. "And after I told him he looked thoughtful for a little while, and I wasn't sure what he was thinking. But now I think that he was trying to figure out what he knew about Veelas, because then he conjured up this really nice couch and sat down and then he held me against his side for almost an hour. Just letting me relax against him, and he only made me leave when the breakfast hour was finished and it was time to get ready for the train. It was just amazing!"

Draco sat back against his Father and looked at his Uncles faces to see how they had reacted to his story. "Oh and Father, Père asked me to tell you that he would see you on the thirty first of July, which I think is his birthday. Which makes sense I suppose, when he's seventeen he will get his inheritance and legally be able to leave his house."

Draco looked puzzled for a moment, "Father? If Père hasn't gone through his inheritance yet how was he able to sense that he was your mate? Did you tell him?"

"No I didn't tell him Dragon, I have been wondering how he knew as well. Your Père seems to be an very powerful and controlled wizard. Tell us how your inheritance went, your Uncle Rodol and I were very disappointed to miss it."

"I already told you all about in a letter Father, and Uncle Sev was there. I'm sure he has already shown you the memory and that you have shown my Uncles the letter. It went very well." Draco looked thoughtful. "It's strange though. If you had told me three weeks ago that Harry Potter would be my Père and that I would spend an hour nestled against his side I would have had admitted you to St. Mungo's. But it doesn't feel strange or unusual. The whole time I was with Père it just felt right. Like I was home you know?"

Lucius chuckled. "Yes I do know Dragon." He turned to look seriously at his son. "You much have recognised Harry as my mate weeks ago. Why didn't you tell me? Or Sev even?"

Draco shrugged. "I was going to. But then I thought that it was something I should tell you face to face. I wasn't sure how you would take it. He's Harry bloody Potter!"


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of its characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story would have been impossible.

Thanks also to GhostxWriter who is also acting as my beta for this story. Her eye for grammar, spelling, and bad sentence structure is extraordinary.

Thanks for reading

3-3-3

Tom Riddle sat in an armchair waiting for Lucius to arrive. His throne room was more appropriate for a dark lord, but he had decided that a more casual setting would be more appropriate. Thus, he chose his office as a more neutral ground. It was decorated with cream walls and dark wooden furniture with green trimmings, he had designed it to remind him of the Slytherin Common Room. Tom elected to sit in one of the two armchairs before the fire, rather than behind his desk. He was speaking to a future friend – not chastising a subordinate.

Ever since regaining his sanity, Tom had been regretting that his decades as a crazy Dark Lord had left him friendless. All of the men he had been friends with in Hogwarts had been killed in the past war. He had decided to reorganise his ranks as his current inner circle didn't fit his plans. He didn't want to be a tyrant. He wanted to lead yes, but he would rather his 'inner circle' be a group of friends and advisers than followers and he wanted Lucius Malfoy to be one of them.

He was pulled out of his musings by a knock on the door and at his call to enter; Lucius entered and moved to kneel in front of him.

"Good evening, my lord."

"Good evening, Lucius, take a seat if you will." He looked Lucius over and noted that the other man was twisting his fingers together and biting his lower lip. That was unusual, Lucius was normally very confident and controlled. Now that he thought about it, Lucius had been twitchy when they had spoken earlier as well.

"I trust you had an enjoyable afternoon with your son, Lucius? He appears very well mannered, you should be proud."

"Thank you, my Lord, it is wonderful to see him again."

Tom nodded, "I have already heard several accounts of last night's events. I would like to hear yours, specifically anything that you noticed or experienced that the others did not." His eyes narrowed slightly as he saw Lucius shift uneasily in his chair, was not Malfoy-like behaviour.

"My lord,"

Tom sighed all this 'my lording' was getting rather irritating. "Lucius, please, call me Tom."

Lucius shot him a startled glance, "As you wish my … Tom."

At Tom's encouraging nod, he continued, "The main difference between my experience that night and that of the others, my lord, I mean Tom, was that I found my mate."

Tom leaned forward in his chair, "Your mate, Lucius?" He pondered for a moment. "Oh yes, I remember. Your father, Abraxas, came into his inheritance as a dominant Veela when we were seventeen. He immediately recognised Prudence Weasley as his mate and – if I remember correctly – that was how the hatred between your family and Weasley family was rekindled. The Weasleys, being a Light family, refused to allow their daughter to bond with Abraxas even though it caused her pain. She was a Draken, wasn't she? I believe their family normally gets one Draken inheritance every third or fourth generation. Strange that the Veela blood seems to have overcome the Draken blood in your family." He brought himself out of his musings. "I apologise, Lucius, I'm sure you already know all this."

Lucius shook his head, "No I don't actually, my parents refused to talk about mother's side of the family."

Tom settled back in his chair again. "Well your mother, Prudence, was the youngest, twenty years younger than her oldest brother – Algernon, I believe. Algernon was the strongest voice against Abraxas and Prudence bonding. Your Grandfather Scorpius ended up getting a Wizengamot's ruling that the two should be bonded. Algernon only had one child – very strange for a Weasley – Septimus. He would have been your first cousin. Septimus married Cedrella Black, who was then disowned. They had three sons. The eldest of which is, of course, Arthur Weasley, the current Lord."

Lucius interrupted him, "I had forgotten the Weasleys had a Lordship." When he realised what he had done, he moved to kneel again. "I beg your forgiveness, my Lord. I should not have interrupted you."

"Sit down, Lucius, you are forgiven. Yes, it is easy to forget that the Weasley house is both Ancient and Noble what with them living in a hovel and wearing patched robes. Arthur was blackmailed into marrying Molly Prewett if the rumours can be believed. Horrible family those Prewetts.

"At any rate, Septimus was furious, and though he couldn't do anything to stop the bonding, he did ensure that while Arthur was married to Molly, he couldn't access the money or utilize his seat on the Wizengamot. Both he and Arthur recognised that if Molly had any access to the seat or the money their House would be ruined. I don't know why Arthur stays married to the insufferable woman, I imagine she still has something she's holding over his head. Poor man.

"I believe that this is enough gossiping for tonight, Lucius, I feel quite the gossipmonger. Not an acceptable role for a dark lord." Tom let his lips curl into a small smile and Lucius let out a started laugh. "Perhaps you could continue to tell me about your mate?"

"Yes, my lord. As I said I found my mate last night. I came into my inheritance when I was seventeen as a submissive Veela," He paused as Tom's eyebrows rose.

"A submissive, Lucius? I never would have guessed that. However did you hide it for so many years? It can't have been easy."

Lucius blushed and shifted in his seat again. "It wasn't. For the first few years, I didn't hide it and found that life as a submissive without a dominant wasn't particularly enjoyable. When I was twenty, I gave up on ever finding my dominant and with the help of Severus and Rodolphus composed a mask to prevent myself from being taken advantage of. It has served me very well over the years, but when I found my mate last night; my façade collapsed and I haven't been able to put it back up.

"That was why I wasn't able to lead the group and talk to Harry, my lord, and then when we returned I didn't feel as though I could survive the meeting without my mask. I do apologise for not being able to carry out your orders, my lord."

"Call me Tom, Lucius," He reminded him. "Harry, you said? I take it that Harry Potter is your dominant mate?" At Lucius' nod he continued, "Well, that is certainly interesting. I take it he didn't recognise you as his mate? He isn't yet seventeen."

"But he did, Tom. He used Legilimency to speak to me, completely ignoring my _Occlumency_shields. He called me little one, and told me that one day he would claim me." Tom watched as Lucius blushed darker. "After discussing it with Severus and Rodolphus, we have surmised that he is likely much more than he appears. He seems to be an average wizard regarding both power and control, and yet if he recognised me as his mate before his inheritance ..." He trailed off.

"Yes, I have actually surmised something similar. When I possessed him, his mind was extraordinarily organised. Similar to mine or Severus' and he spoke to me as well, told me that we needed to talk and that he would owl me. It makes me wonder what more we don't know about the boy. If he has managed to conceal that level of power and control, then what else have we missed?"

Both Tom and Lucius stared pensively at the fire.

"I am sure that you probably had some anxiety about telling me the identity of your mate, Lucius. I assure that I will not use it against you. There seems to be much we do not know about Potter and until we understand more about him; I cannot make an educated decision about how to deal with this.

"Lucius, I am sure that you will have noticed that I am significantly saner than I once was. When I was younger I dabbled in soul magic, and it wasn't until recently that I realised that they had caused me to loose myself. I have since corrected the damage and am now in my right mind again." He paused, observing Lucius. "Having regained my sanity, I have realised that in the past my goals and methods have changed significantly from my original ones. I plan to return to my original ways of doing things and one of the things that will change is my structure of command.

"While I will still be the leader, I wish to replace my Inner Circle with a group of wizards who I can discuss my ideas with in a more casual manner. Some of the current Inner Circle will remain in this new capacity, others such as Bellatrix, Crabbe and Goyle will not. I would like you to remain in my new inner circle and become one of those advisors, if that is agreeable." He watched as Lucius' expression changed from curious and surprised, to amazed.

"Me, my Lord? I would be honoured to serve you in such a way. May I ask who else you are considering for this role?"

"Lucius, the only way this will work is if the members of it behave less like terrified subservient minions and more like friends. Please call me Tom, and you can question anything you like. I have asked you to be involved because I want to hear your questions and opinions." Lucius swallowed heavily and nodded.

"To answer your question about the other people for the council, I know that I want you, Severus, Rodolphus, Theodred Nott, and some younger members as well. Perhaps the young Lord Flint. I believe he was your son's Quidditch captain, was he not?"

Lucius smiled faintly. "Yes he was. If I may, Theodred may not be suited for the role, Tom. Ever since the loss of his wife he has been unbalanced. Draco is friends with his son and from what he has told me, all is not well in that household. Theodore spends the majority of his Christmas holidays at school, and he spends much of his summer between my manor and the Zabini manor. Draco told me that he has seen the odd bruise on his friend, it concerns him."

Tom scowled, "Really? Have you done anything to remove young Theodore from his father's care?"

"There was nothing I could do. There was no proof and Theodore denied that there was anything wrong. I have only been able to ensure that Theodore has a place to stay when he is avoiding his father."

"Much the same as the way you spend your spare time in my library when trying to avoid your wife, Lucius?" Tom laughed as his companion blushed, "I am glad that Theodore has had a place of refuge, I will see what I can do about Theodred. I do not tolerate child abuse." Tom's eyes flashed and he scowled darkly. For a moment, Lucius thought that Tom had reverted back to his previous mind-set. He had seen that expression on the Dark Lord before, normally seconds before he tortured someone.

"Thank you my ...Tom." Lucius said apprehensively.

The other man took a deep breath and schooled his features into a more neutral expression. He even managed a half-way pleasant smile as he teased, "Your mate will become jealous if he hears you calling me 'your Tom', Lucius." Lucius laughed nervously, and Tom joined in.

"Yes, Tom."

There was a knock on the door and a House Elf was admitted carrying a white owl that promptly took flight and landed on the edge of Tom's chair. Tom looked questioningly at the House Elf.

"Excuse Flimsy, Master Dark Lordy sir. But this here owl is being wanting to gives you its letter Master Dark Lordy sir. Flimsy being very sorry for disturbing Master Dark Lordy sir. Flimsy will iron his fingers and poke spikes into his feet to punish himself, Master Dark Lordy sir."

Tom tried to ignore Lucius' amused expression at the name the House Elves had given him and took the letter from the owl. When the owl stayed where it was, he dismissed Flimsy with instructions not to punish himself, and opened the letter.

He read the letter in its entirety before looking back up to Lucius.

"It is from Potter. He wishes to meet with me so that we might" he paused to read from the letter, "spend some time coming to understand one another better."

Passing the letter to Lucius, he stared into the fire as a new piece of wood magically appeared on top of it. _Wonderful creatures House Elves_, he mused. Lucius' voice startled him out of his thoughts.

"He obviously has more understanding of pureblood society than everyone believes. I don't believe that I could have written a better letter myself. And he seems to have chosen a muggle restaurant for the location, an interesting choice especially given that it is you that he is meeting."

"A wise choice though. Neither of us can afford to be seen by the wizarding public, particularly not together."

"Will you meet with him?"

"Of course, would you like attend as well, Lucius? I imagine you are rather desperate to see your mate after so many years of waiting."

"No, as much as I long to see him, it is not my place to arrange to meet my dominant without his knowledge. In any case you should go alone as a sign of good faith, take an emergency portkey just in case it is a trap though."

"Very true. I will pen a response now I think. You should head home to your son,Lucius. If you could explain to Severus and Rodolphus the plans I have shared with you this evening and my offer for them to be part of the council. Just keep it between the three of you."

"Of course my ... Tom. Have a pleasant sleep." He stood and made his way to the door.

"You as well, Lucius. I will see you in the next few days."

3-3-3

At nine fifteen on the morning of the twenty-second, Harry was walking from the London bus terminal to the Leaky Cauldron. He had taken the eight o'clock bus from Surrey to London as he had a lot of jobs to do before he met the Dark Lord at one. He was planning on buying some new clothes both muggle and wizarding but needed to get some money from _Gringotts_ first.

Up until now he hadn't bothered to buy himself any nice muggle clothes or wizarding robes. When he was at Hogwarts he wore either his school uniform or the same two pairs of jeans and three T-shirts that his Aunt had given him from the local goodwill store a few years ago. Three years ago they had been bit big on him. He hadn't grown much in the last few years but these days they were a little small. But he was still only one hundred and sixty five centimetres, and barely weighed sixty kilograms. He was smaller than some of the second year boys and most of the third year ones, which wasn't something he appreciated.

He put up his hood before making his way into the Leaky Cauldron – he really didn't want the Order to find out he had been here. When he entered the bank a few minutes later, he was doubly glad that he had spent some time learning Gobbledegook, it would mean he could make his request without being overheard by wizards. He was by no means fluent, but he thought that he could put together enough words for the goblins to understand him. Seeing a teller free he made his way up to it and spoke from under his hood.

"Hitap böyük süpürgəsaqqal. Mən və mən bir sirr kimi qızıl almaq lazımdır." At the Goblins shocked look, Harry cringed. He really wasn't entirely sure what he had said. He had meant to greet and compliment the goblin and then ask to take some gold from his vault confidentially. He really hoped he hadn't insulted him. Suddenly having spoken to the goblin in Gobbledegook didn't seem like a good idea any more.

"Follow me." The goblin growled, and Harry did so, desperately hoping that he wasn't about to be beheaded for an insult to the Goblin Nation. He was ushered into an ornately decorated office and gruffly told to sit by the older goblin behind the desk. He watched as the teller discussed something with the goblin behind the desk. They spoke Gobbledegook so quickly he couldn't understand a word they were saying.

"Mr. Potter, I am pleased to see you. I was planning on writing you a letter this morning asking you to visit Gringotts, but it would seem you have saved me the effort. My name is Garnuk and I am employed here at Gringotts as the head of the Inheritance Department. Congratulations on your achievement of learning some Gobbledegook. We goblins always appreciate it when wizards take some time to learn our tongue, even if the wizard butchers it as I am told you did."

Harry blushed as Garnuk laughed at him.

"Mr. Potter, you are of course aware that you are due to inherit the position of Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter on your seventeenth birthday." He continued as Harry nodded. "However, Gringotts has recently been informed that your Godfather, Sirius Black, has passed away and as he made you his heir, things have become slightly more complicated.

"You are of course, eligible to be the blood heir of the Ancient and Noble House of Black as your paternal grandmother was a Black. You wouldn't have been the first in line for the position but it is the current Lord's right to decide which of the possible heirs will inherit.

"The House of Black operates differently to the House of Potter in a few ways, one of which is the age at which the heir may take the position of Lord. Unlike the House of Potter, which requires the heir to wait until they are seventeen before inheriting the Lordship, the House of Black allows it's heir to take on the responsibility at fifteen, thereby emancipating them."

He looked at Harry sharply, "Are you understanding me so far, Mr. Potter?"

"Yes, thank you, sir."

Garnuk smiled widely showing an awful lot of white teeth. "Very well then. As you are the Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Black you need to be emancipated and claim the Lordship. I have the forms here if you are willing to fill them out now."

Harry read through the forms that were slid across the desk. He signed them with the blood quill provided, it was a relief to be using it for its original purpose rather than Umbridge's ghastly detentions. After passing the forms back to Garnuk, he was given a box. Harry opened it and took out a ring. It was almost three centimetres in diameter and had a large black jewel with a simple version of the Black Family Crest engraved on it. Looking closely, Harry realised that the Black House's motto had been etched around the jewel as well.

"If you put it on, Lord Black we can continue to the next order of business." Nodding as Harry did so, Garnuk continued. "I presume you would also like to claim the Potter Lordship now that you are emancipated?"

Harry repeated the process with the forms and the ring. He was surprised by how similar the Potter ring was to the one already on his hand. The only difference was the colour of the jewel, blue, and the Potter Crest and Motto instead of the Black ones. After he had donned the ring, he sat back and watched Garnuk pick up a new pile of papers.

"Would you prefer to be addressed as Lord Potter or Lord Black, my lord?"

"Lord Potter is fine." Harry replied leaning back in his chair. Today was not going as he had expected.

"As you wish, Lord Potter. This is where things become slightly more interesting. Eight years ago the last Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Peverell died and in his will directed that in thanks for defeating Voldemort, you were to be given the Peverell Dukedom despite the distance of your relation to them. However, I will need to perform a test to confirm your eligibility for the title. It has been over ten generations since any of your ancestors carried the Peverell name. He handed Harry a bowl and a dagger and directed him to slice him palm open and allow some blood to fall in the bowl.

After having followed Garnuk's directions, Harry started at the sight of the dagger. It was silver with rubies decorating the hilt, and when Harry looked closer he saw the same engraving of a Griffin that was on the sword he had used as a Second Year.

"This looks just like the Sword of Gryffindor," he exclaimed. "It has the same markings around the handle." He looked up at Garnuk. "Do you know whether they were they made by the same person?"

"Yes, they were both forged by Ragnuk the First. Lord Potter, if I may, when did you have the opportunity to see Godric Gryffindor's Sword?"

Harry examined the dagger more closely as he answered. "I pulled it out of the Hogwart's Sorting Hat in my second year. I was in a spot of trouble and really needed some help. It saved my life."

Garnuk's eyes widened, and then seemed to look past Harry. "Bu Peverell yal almaq dön."

Harry turned around and was surprised to see a Goblin scurrying out of the room, Harry hadn't even realised he was there. He frowned, he could always sense wizards and muggles. What made Goblins different.

Garnuk turned back to Harry and then looked into the bowl that contained Harry's blood. Then he passed more papers across to Harry along with another ring box.

"You are indeed eligible for the Peverell Dukedom, Lord Potter. Once you have signed these papers you will be known as Duke Peverell. The House of Peverell is an Archaic and Noble House and therefore outranks both the Potter and Black Houses."

Harry nodded, he knew that. Actually, if he remembered correctly, the Peverell House was the most high ranked House in England. He grinned as he began signing more forms, that could be very useful.

After the forms were signed, he opened the ring box and pulled out yet another ring. This one was different. Instead of the crest and motto being engraved on the amethyst coloured jewel, they were encased in the middle of it and somehow magnified to look larger. He rearranged the rings so that the Peverell one sat on the middle finger of his right hand.

When he looked up he saw that the goblin from earlier had returned bearing yet another ring box which he set in front of Harry.

"Duke Peverell, the fact that you were able to pull Godric Gryffindor's Sword out of the Hogwarts' Sorting Hat suggests that you are possibly also the Heir of the Archaic and Royal House of Gryffindor." Garnuk took in Harry's astonished expression and smirked. "The only way to test whether or not this is true is for you to attempt to put on the ring. Please try now. There are no nasty side effects." He added at Harry's uncertain look.

When the ring slipped onto Harry's finger easily, Garnuk nodded. Harry took a moment to compare this ring to the others. It was the same design as the Peverell ring, but had a ruby for the jewel and the Gryffindor Crest was molten gold.

"I think you will find that the House of Gryffindor has very little money in its vault, your grace. The Dukedom does however; give you yet another Wizengamot seat, and a quarter of the Hogwarts' shares. If you and another of the Founder's heirs wished to, together you could make any kind of changes you wanted to Hogwarts."

"Wow." Harry was stunned. He had come into Gringotts for a simple withdrawal of funds and he would be leaving with two Lordships and two Dukedoms. One of them being Gryffindor! Hopefully though, this would only aid his plans. If he and Tom – Slytherin's Heir – could agree on some changes to Hogwarts … The things he could achieve would be limitless.

He looked up to see that Garnuk was laughing at him again.

"Do you wish to be addressed as Duke Gryffindor or Duke Peverell, your grace?"

Harry considered it for a moment. "Duke Peverell." He decided, it was the more powerful House after all.

"Garnuk? Is there any way for me to find out whether I have any creature blood in my family? I am expecting a creature inheritance on my birthday and would like to know what sort of creature to expect."

"Of course, Duke Peverell." Garnuk pulled out another bowl, and handed both it and the dagger over to Harry. "If you will just slice open your palm again, your grace?"

He took the bowl from Harry again and stirred it with his finger while chanting in Gobbledegook. Then he looked down at a spare piece of parchment on his desk as drew his bloody finger across it. He studied the paper then looked back up at Harry.

"It would seem that you will be coming into a dominant Veela inheritance, your grace." Garnuk glanced away thoughtfully and then looked back at Harry. "If I may, your grace, as you are emancipated, there is a ritual we can do that would force your creature inheritance to activate now rather than in a month. The ritual would only take an hour, but I have been told that it is excruciatingly painful and would cost a fair amount of gallons."

Harry was delighted. "Could I do it now? I have a lunch appointment at one, but if it only takes an hour then I should be done on time." He looked hopefully at Garnuk.

"Of course, your grace. The ritual will be completed by eleven thirty, so you should have plenty of time to get to your appointment." He stood, "It has been a pleasant experience meeting you, your grace. If you ever wish to discuss any of your vaults or properties please ask for Bartik at one of the tellers, he is your account manager. Bartik will see you through the ritual." He gestured at the goblin from earlier. "Good luck, Duke Peverell. May your life be filled with many gold and heirs."

Harry nodded and stood as well. "Thank you, Garnuk you have been wonderfully helpful." He smiled and bowed slightly and then followed Bartik out of the office.

3-3-3

Thank you for all the reviews.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks to GhostxWriter who has also acted as Beta for this story, her comments are wonderfully helpful.

4-4-4

It was midday by the time Harry left the bank. Once the ritual was finished, he was finally able to withdraw the money he'd originally come into Gringotts for. While he was there, Harry discovered the Goblins would be able to take the Ministry trace off of his wand and would he be interested? Harry was and now felt considerably lighter with that concern off of his shoulders. As he left, he thought briefly on all that had just happened.

The ritual had been just as painful as the goblin had warned him it would be, but he was glad he had gone through with it. He was now a Veela, and was thrilled to discover that he no longer needed his glasses. He had been horrified to discover that he hadn't grown at all. He was still only one hundred sixty-five centimetres tall. One would think that as a dominant creature he would at least grow as tall as his submissive. Harry shook the thought off; he had other matters to attend to.

He only had about an hour left before he was supposed to go meet Tom – and he most certainly couldn't go in these old clothes! It wasn't seemly. As he strode towards Twilfit and Tattings, Harry remembered that he also wanted to visit the twin's shop while he was in the Alley. Maybe he'd have some time while his clothes were being made? He could only hope.

Upon entering the store, Harry was delighted to note that he was the only customer. He smiled at the seamstress and explained what he needed. "I have a very important meeting at an upper class muggle restaurant in one hour and I need an outfit. Nothing too stiff and fancy please, but something that shows my wealth and status." Harry waved his hand casually, making sure that she saw the Peverell ring clearly displayed. "Can you do all that in such a short time?"

The seamstress quickly jumped up and ushered him into a back room. "Yes of course, your grace. You just stand here," She manoeuvred him onto a black mat. "And all the measurements are instantly recorded. Any colours you are partial to, your grace? Or would you like me to make the selection?"

Harry smiled, "You can make the selection. Do I have to wait here? Or can I come back in, say, thirty minutes?"

"Thirty minutes would be excellent, you grace. I shall begin work immediately, your grace. If you will excuse me?" Without realizing it, Harry found himself being manoeuvred towards the door.

A bemused Harry left the shop and made his way to the garishly decorated store that Fred and George had bought for their business. It seemed to be one of the busiest on the street, probably due to students being out of school for the summer. He was glad that the seamstress hadn't recognised him as Harry Potter. Harry supposed that it was due to his lack of glasses and his hair hiding the scar.

Stepping into the very busy Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes store, he hoped that he would go unrecognised here as well. He made his way through the crowd until he found the counter and only had time to realise that a girl he didn't know was manning it before his arm was grabbed and he was pulled into a back room.

"Harry!" Exclaimed George. "It's good to see you! You can't imagine how insane things have been around here. Fred and I have been wishing that our partner was here to bask in the crazy success that is our store. Did you see it out there? It's amazing!" He pulled Harry into a hug. "And it's all thanks to you! It would have taken Fred and me years to come up with enough capital to open the shop on our own."

"What's this? A hug I wasn't invited to?" Fred's voice came from the doorway.

Harry smirked "Well you see, Fred …"

"We were just so overcome by the excitement," George continued.

"At seeing one another again,"

"We decided to start without you."

"You're welcome to join in now that your here though." Harry offered.

Fred pulled Harry into a hug. "Merlin I missed you, Hart!" He gestured Harry into a chair as the two brother settled down across from him. "What are you doing here though? I thought you were under house arrest? And I think you have something you need to tell us." He pulled a sheet of parchment from his pocket and passed it over to Harry.

The parchment seemed to be a list of names, most of which he didn't recognise. Harry looked at Fred in confusion.

"One of our more practical inventions," Fred explained. "It records the identity of anyone who enters the store. Not even Polyjuice potion can fool it." He reached across and pointed at a name close to the bottom of the parchment. "This is what it recorded when you entered the store."

Harry looked at the name. Harry James Potter-Black-Gryffindor-Peverell.

_Oh. _

He looked up at the twins again. George was looking very confused so Harry passed him the parchment. "Yeah, well I seem to have acquired a few extra surnames and titles this morning." He laughed at the twins disbelieving faces.

"That's all you have to say?" George asked.

"Hart! That's an additional Lordship and two Dukedoms!" Fred shared a glance with George. "That makes you the most politically powerful and highly ranked man in the country. Even Lucius Malfoy will have to kneel to you on very formal occasions!"

Harry smirked at an image of a naked Lucius kneeling in front of him, staring up at him through his eyelashes. "Yes I know, but as useful as it will be it's not that big of a deal. I actually have more important things to talk to you about today, and I don't have much time."

Both Fred and George sat up straighter and looked at Harry expectantly.

"Firstly, since I am a partner in this shop, against my wishes I might add," Harryglared half-heartedly at them. "I have decided to invest more money into the business." He took out a money bag and handed it to Fred. "Here are five thousand galleons to be used for anything you want."

Harry levelled a glare at the twins who looked like they were about to protest. "Seriously guys, you forcibly made me a partner in this business and since I am, I refuse to not contribute. As I have very little time and plenty of money it makes sense that I contribute financially." He smiled at them. "Take the money and use it for product invention or staff salaries. Anywhere it's needed."

He found himself pulled into another group hug. "Thanks, Harry old boy." The twins chimed.

"Right," Harry started again after he had been released from the hug. "The other thing I wanted to tell was that when I was in the Department of Mysteries I ..."

"We are so sorry about Sirius, Hart." Fred broke in. "We know that he meant a lot to you and we were..."

"And still are!" George broke in.

"...very sorry that you lost him."

Harry nodded in thanks before continuing. "While I was in the Department of Mysteries I found my mate. Apparently I have a dominant Veela inheritance on my birthday; the goblins helped me with a ritual to force the inheritance this morning." He looked up at their stunned faces. "I am officially a Veela as of about an hour ago."

"Wow, Hart..."

"...Congratulations!"

"And who is your lucky submissive?"

Harry looked at them seriously. "You have to promise not to freak out or overreact! Absolutely no dramatics, Ok?" He looked at them until they nodded in agreement. Rolling his eyes as they acted out being hurt by his comment.

"My mate is Lucius Malfoy."

The twins stared at him in shock.

"Lucius Malfoy?"

"As in long blond hair..."

"Follows Voldemort..."

"Has a prick for a son..."

Their comments were halted by an animalistic growl from Harry.

"What we really meant to say, Harry, was..."

"That's wonderful..."

"Lovely chap that Lucius Malfoy."

"With a very pleasant son, as well."

They nodded convincingly and then joined Harry as he burst into laughter.

"Yes you idiots, that Lucius Malfoy. Besides his following Tom isn't that much of an issue, considering you know I was planning on meeting with him this summer." He checked his watch. "I'm meeting him in about half an hour actually. And Draco's my son as well now, which makes you his uncles."

Harry laughed as the twins smirked, "Uncles, eh? We can do that, can't we, Gred?"

"Absolutely, Forge, we'll make smashing uncles I'm sure."

Fred ran his eyes over Harry's appearance over and then raised an eyebrow at him. "You aren't going to meet the mighty and powerful Dark Lord looking like that, are you, Harry?"

"You're both a Lord and a Duke twice over." George chimed in. "You can't meet him looking like a street urchin."

"No I'm having an outfit made at Twilfit and Tattings. Should be finished by now actually."

Suddenly he found himself being pushed out of the door.

"Well off you go then, Hart. Go pick up your outfit and then come straight back here, and we'll help you get all dolled up."

Harry laughed at them but obediently left their shop and walked back to Twilfit and Tattings. He re-entered the shop and found the seamstress from earlier embroidering behind the counter. He approached the counter and cleared his throat softly. The seamstress looked up with a smile. "Ah, Duke Peverell, I've finished the outfit." She put a parcel on the counter. "Now did you want shoes with that?"

At Harry's nod she disappeared into the back room and came back a minute later with a pair of black shoes.

"That will be seventy galleons, your grace. Was there anything else I can help you with?"

"Well I was actually planning on shopping for a new wardrobe later in the day. The full works, both muggle and wizarding clothes. Formal wear, casual wear, duelling robes, sleep wear etc. As you have my measurements it makes sense that I order it here. Again you can pick the colours, but no pink. If you wish to use red or gold, please use it sparingly. Harry handed over the galleons and smirked at the seamstress' shell-shocked expression. "Will that be possible, ma'am? I need them on rather short notice."

"Of course, your grace. It would be my honour to sew the wardrobe of one such as yourself. If you would like, I can have the first few outfits finished around five this afternoon? Anything in particular you'd need so quickly?"

"That would be wonderful, ma'am. If possible, could you make two sets of both casual muggle clothes and wizarding robes, two formal robes, one duelling robe and some sleepwear for me to pick up this afternoon? I will need shoes for those outfits as well. If you need to call someone else in to assist you, I would be willing to compensate you." Harry added. At her agreement, he bid her farewell and strode quickly back to the Weasley's store.

He was feeling rather pleased with himself, who knew clothes shopping was so easy? Upon entering the twin's shop, his arm was again grabbed and he was pulled through a different door than before. He followed the twins up the stairs and into their flat and then hurried into the bathroom to shower. When he emerged ten minutes later in his new clothes, he mockingly twirled at the twins wolf whistles. He knew that he looked very good. The seamstress had done a great job. She had made him a pair of black slacks and a royal purple shirt, with a casual black blazer to match.

The twins pushed him into a chair and then fussed with his hair, forcing it to behave with a mix of gel and mousse. George handed him a diamond stud and Harry carefully performed the spell that created a temporary piercing, before inserting it. When the twins deemed his hair as good as it could get, they passed him the black socks and shoes that the seamstress had added and watched as he put them on.

"So, Hart, where are you meeting him?"

"The Abundantes Divitias. I chose it because it's only a five minute walk from the Leaky Cauldron. Looks really nice."

"Yeah, we know the place." George nodded. "One of us will Apparate you there. Don't want you running late now, do we?"

"That'd be great guys! Thanks." Standing up, he twirled again. "How do I look?"

"Every part of the double Duke you are." Fred commented. "I'll take you now, Hart. You ready?" At Harry's nod, he wrapped his arms around Harry and Apparated them out of the flat.

4-4-4

Tom was nervous. It had been over fifty years since he had last been in muggle society in a non-violent capacity at least. As he stood in front of the muggle restaurant where he was meeting the Potter boy, he was glad that he had asked Lucius choose his clothes for the occasion. He hadn't had the first idea about what he should wear, his experience in the muggle world certainly hadn't involved meetings in expensive restaurants. He admired the black muggle suit he was wearing with a dark green shirt, he looked good.

He had been looking forward to this meeting for days. Finally the mystery of the Potter heir would be solved once and for all – or at least he hoped it would. Tom had been curious ever since his last encounter with him, he wanted to know what else the boy was hiding – and why.

Taking a deep breath, he strode into the restaurant and when the host greeted him. Tom informed that man that he was meeting a Mr. Harry Potter. He followed the man to a small secluded table and was perplexed at the appearance of the man already seated at the table, surely that couldn't be Potter. The man had black hair and pale skin, which admittedly was similar to Potter's, but he wasn't wearing glasses and his clothes were tailored. He looked aristocratic, whereas Potter had always looked like a street urchin. As the man stood to greet him, Tom realised that it was indeed the Potter boy. Only this Potter was a man, and Tom found that he no longer had any problems imagining him as Lucius' dominant.

"Duke Slytherin. Thank you for meeting me today." He held out a hand and as Tom shook it he recognised the Peverell ring on his finger.

"Duke Peverell, a pleasure." He and Harry both took their seats. "Please call me Tom."

"Then you must call me Harry. It is very strange being called Duke Peverell." He confided. "I only came into my inheritance this morning."

"I must say I am surprised. I wasn't aware that you were to inherit the Peverell Dukedom."

"Yes, I admit to being surprised myself. I walked into the bank to withdraw some money and walked out with the Potter and Black Lordships and the Peverell and Gryffindor Dukedoms." Harry paused.

Tom felt his eyebrows rise; that was a lot of titles and power. Four seats on the Wizengamot – seats which would give him fourteen votes, an absurd amount of gold, and he was one of the Founder's heirs. More importantly, Potter outranked him! He looked up again as Harry continued talking.

"I must say that I was saddened by the fiasco on the eighteenth, Tom. Losing my Godfather was upsetting and it would appear that you gained nothing from the evening. Though I do understand why you did it. To be aware of a prophecy about you and not know the contents must be very frustrating." He smirked.

Tom was feeling very off balance. This Harry was not one that had imagined in any of his ponderings. This Harry had a title equal to his own – two even – and could talk evenly about Tom's forces killing his Godfather only days after the fact. This Harry smirked and had knowledge of the prophecy. Tom felt a little out of his depth – if he was being honest with himself, and how ridiculous was that? He was the Dark Lord for Merlin's sake!

Tom jumped slightly as a waiter startled him out of his thoughts.

"Good afternoon, sirs. Would you like to order a drink and appetizer to begin with?"

Tom glanced over his menu and hastily ordered a drink and then asked for the same appetizer Harry had chosen. When he looked back up at Harry he saw the man was still smirking.

"You know of the prophecy?" He tried to sound nonchalant but knew that he hadn't succeeded. Damn, what was it about Harry Potter that made him feel as though he had met his equal? It was ludicrous he was over fifty years older than the boy. Not even Dumbledore had ever made him feel this way.

"Yes, Dumbledore was the one to witness the original prophecy and he told me about the contents." Harry had sounded perfectly nonchalant, the smug bastard. As their drinks and appetizers arrived, and the waiter took their orders for the main course, Tom wondered whether Harry would make him beg.

"I could tell the contents if you like." Harry offered taking a sip from his drink. "I would, of course need your oath that you won't continue to use its contents as a reason to kill me, I am willing to do the same" He smirked again. "An 'I won't kill you if you won't kill me' oath if you like."

Tom considered it while nibbling on his food. His first instinct was to agree to anything as long as he got the contents of the prophecy, but what if the prophecy predicted his defeat at the hands of Potter and Potter found a way around the oath?

Harry's voice broke into his thoughts, "If it helps, personally I think that the prophecy has already been fulfilled."

Tom nodded head. "Very well. Shall we swear the oaths then?" He looked sharply at Harry. "I'm presuming that those rings on your fingers mean that you are able to use magic?"

At Harry's nod they both completed their oaths as inconspicuously as possible.

"Ah yes, the prophecy goes like this." Harry seemed to take a deep breath. "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches ... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies ... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not ... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives ... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies ..." He stopped and allowed Tom time to process it before continuing.

"You see, I have already vanquished you at least twice by my counting. Three times if you include me defeating the memory of you in the diary. Besides you're hardly the Dark Lord any more are you?" He laughed at Tom's irritated splutter. "I mean look at you, you're sitting having lunch with your enemy surrounded by muggles. That is definitely not Dark Lord behaviour."

Tom blushed. "What about the part where you supposedly killed me?"

"Well - and this is just speculation - I presume that your recent sanity is caused by the destruction of your horcruxes. Am I right?" All Tom could do was stare in disbelief, so Harry seemed to take that as an affirmative answer. "And as I am the one who destroyed - I suppose you could say killed - your first horcrux, I could be described as the one who killed the Dark Lord. At no point does the prophecy say that I am destined to kill Tom Riddle." He sat back looking very pleased with himself.

Tom on the other hand was in shock. How had he known? Harry had only been thirteen when he met his horcrux, how had he deduced that it was in fact a horcrux? And then how had he concluded the reason for his return to sanity? Out of all the different options, how had he picked the correct one? Looking over he saw that Harry was smirking again; he was really coming to hate that smirk.

"Yes that all makes plenty of sense. I take it Dumbledore does not share your view on this?" At Harry's affirmative answer he decided that it was time to move on. "I would be interested to hear your thoughts on the Wizarding World, especially Wizarding Britain."

Harry took a mouthful of his drink before answering. "Well, I think there are plenty of wonderful things about Wizarding Britain, but there are also some things that need changing." Tom nodded for him to continue.

"I think that there are many changes that need to be made at Hogwarts for example. More subject choices, better teachers, and a change to the sorting system so that Slytherins are no longer judged as harshly.

"Also the laws on magical creatures, specifically dark creatures such as werewolves need to be reviewed. Muggleborns need to be integrated into our world earlier and taught the traditions and some basic magical theory before Hogwarts. There definitely needs to be a form of Wizarding Child Services to check up on magical children to ensure that they are not abused, especially magical children in muggle households." He paused, taking another sip of his drink.

Tom was astonished. Almost every idea that Harry had mentioned fit exactly in line with his own thoughts and dreams, and the few that didn't were inspirational.

Harry continued, "There needs to be more tolerance between muggleborns and purebloods, also between light wizards and dark wizards." Tom choked slightly on his appetizer. "Is everything alright, Tom?"

Tom nodded, "Yes, everything is fine. You are very different from what I expected. In all the reports I have heard about you, and during every encounter I have had with you, you have come across as the epitome of light, Gryffindor's Golden Boy, Dumbledore's Disciple." He paused and then waved a hand in Harry's direction. "And yet here you are, telling me that you think society should be more accepting of dark wizards."

Harry snorted, "Dumbledore's Disciple indeed. Surely after our encounter last week you realised that I wasn't all I seemed? I was sure that between my confrontation with you, and what happened with Lucius, you would have at least started questioning what you knew of me."

"Yes I did," Tom admitted. "And I've been curious ever since. But I didn't think that you would have fallen this far from the tree."

The waiter arrived with their meals and both Tom and Harry ate in silence as Harry allowed Tom to process all he had heard. After a few minutes, Harry broke the silence.

"You have yet to tell me what exactly your plans are, now that you are no longer a Dark Lord." He smirked in Tom's direction.

"My plans are very similar to your thoughts. Though One difference is that I would like to find a way to make it impossible for muggleborn's families to discuss our world to their friends. I also want to destroy Dumbledore, not necessarily in a killing sense, but I do want to significantly decrease the amount of influence he has on our world. Part of it is pettiness I admit, but I do think that our world would be better off without him in power."

Tom watched Harry to see how he would take confirmation of his plans in regards to Dumbledore. When all he did was nod in agreement, Tom decided that he should have known better than to expect any other response from the other man.

After another few minutes, where Tom and Harry ate their lunch in silence, Tom decided to broach the question he had wanted to ask since their oaths.

"So where do we go from here?" At Harry's confused look he elaborated. "We obviously get along well, and have similar dreams for the Wizarding World. Do we pretend this never happened, or work together? I wouldn't say no to an alliance with you, Harry." He shot a sly smile at him, "And I'm sure that Lucius would appreciate not having to defect to your side of the war."

"I wouldn't object to an alliance with you either Tom, though I refuse to be anything less than your equal."

Tom considered it. He had never had an equal before; it was entirely new concept to him. Though from what he had seen today, if anyone was worth to be his equal it was Harry.

"My equal. Yes, I can do that. We should iron out the details of the alliance another time. When would be convenient for another meeting?"

"I am in need for a place to stay, Tom. I was emancipated this morning and I have no wish to stay with my muggle relatives any longer than necessary. I will likely move into Malfoy Manor, but I wish to give Lucius time to work out the situation with Narcissa first. Do you have a spare suite in your manor that I could stay in? That way we could meet very easily."

Tom nodded, "Yes, of course. You are very welcome. I presume that you have some errands that need to run first? I have a portkey I can give you that will take you directly to my manor when you are ready. I will go ahead of you and arrange for the room to be aired." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the portkey before handing it to Harry.

"The activation key is Riddle Manor."

"Thank you, Tom, have you finished your lunch? I will pay the bill and get started on my errands before following you to your manor."

Tom nodded and stood. "Thank you. I will expect you in a few hours." He nodded at Harry and turned to leave.

"Oh, and, Tom?" Tom turned back towards Harry expectantly. "Please inform Lucius that I wish to see him when I arrive."

Tom nodded his agreement and left.

4-4-4

Wow, so reading through this again – quite literally months after I wrote it – I have to admit that I'm slightly uncomfortable at how ooc Tom is... I promise that his characterisation gets better.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Authors Note: Wow! 23 reviews in 24 hours. You guys are amazing. So here is another chapter.

A few things before the story starts. This is mostly AU from the Order of the Phoenix. Also in this Harry Potter World Hogwarts' students start at the age of 12 instead of 11.

This story is slash and this chapter will have m/m sex scenes. But they won't be posted of fanfiction. Look for them on archive – same penname.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

5-5-5

It was almost three o'clock by the time Harry once again made his way into Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. The store was much quieter now, with only a few people milling around, and he couldn't see Fred of George anywhere. Walking further into the shop he realised the Fred seemed to be putting stock on shelves, while talking to Neville Longbottom.

As Harry watched them he realised that Fred wasn't talking to Neville, he was ignoring him. Amused, he observed as Fred turned towards the shelves only for Neville to press himself against Fred's back and whisper something in his ear. Fred jumped and squeaked as his face flushed red, and tried to move away.

Looking around Harry saw that the girl at the counter was also watching the interaction and made his way over to her.

"Good afternoon," He paused as he read her name tag, "Verity. Does this happen often?"

"Oh yes, at least once a day for the last week." She leaned closer to him so she could whisper confidingly. "Mr. Longbottom requested to court them, but they said no. I don't know why though. I mean look at him, he's a catch. Good looking and due to inherit the Longbottom Lordship." She sighed. "So anyway, Mr. Longbottom has decided that he is going to convince them. He comes in everyday and does that." Verity gestured to Neville who was now leaning sensually against one of the shelves and watches Fred with predatory eyes.

Harry laughed, "And they haven't done anything to stop it? Banned him from the shop or anything?"

"No, that's the funny thing." She told him in a low tone. "All they do is blush and try and avoid him when he's here. That's why I don't do anything. I mean if they really didn't want him to, they could stop him themselves." Verity looked coyly at him while fluttering her eyelashes. "Enough about them, how to you know the Mr. Weasleys? I saw you with them earlier and you looked very close."

"Oi Verity stop flirting with our business partner, he's taken." George said coming through the door behind the counter. Verity blushed.

"How are ya Hart? Good meeting? You haven't been standing there long, have you? You should've come and found me."

Harry smirked. "The meeting was great actually. I was just enjoying the view." He gestured towards a very flustered looking Fred and a smirking Neville. "Verity was just filling me in on all the gossip."

George blushed, "Bloody hell girl. You've got absolutely no sense of discretion." He shooed her into the back and then turned to Harry, "And you didn't think to go save my poor twin?"

Harry snorted, "Save him? No I actually think I'm with Neville on this one." He laughed at George's betrayed look. "Besides if you really weren't interested you could have warded the store to stop his entry or something."

"Hello Harry." Harry looked up to see that Fred had finished with the shelves and he and Neville had made their way over.

"Hello Neville." He ran his eyes over the still flushed and flustered Fred. "Enjoying the in-store entertainment I see?"

Neville smirked and nodded. "Sure am. I came into the store last week and thought, 'wow isn't that pretty, I must have it'.

Harry laughed ignoring the twins' disgruntled expressions, "Pretty indeed. I'm sure if you're persistent enough you will be able to take them home to play with."

"That's the plan." Neville winked at Fred who flushed again. "How have your plans been progressing?"

"Very well actually. I had lunch with him today. Very pleasant fellow, I made him blush. I actually had a very interesting development occur over the last week or so."

Neville, who had been slowly running his eyes up and down the twins bodies, looked up in curiosity.

"Yes?"

Harry quickly erected a privacy charm.

"I have discovered that I have creature blood. Veela to be exact and my mate is Lucius Malfoy."

"Lord Malfoy? Really? And Veela you said?" Neville took a minute to digest all the information. "Merlin that's quite a development. That makes Malfoy junior your son doesn't it?"

"Yeah, slightly strange I know. But really cool at the same time. I have a family, you know. Another thing happened to me today. Because of Sirius' will I was able to accept both the Potter and Black titles now, and I realised that I'm also the Duke of both Peverell and Gryffindor."

He showed Neville the rings.

"Merlin Harry, you don't do things by halves do you. I'm a little jealous to be honest, I really want to come into my inheritance now. I'm sick of Gran and Dumbledore's crap. I just want out of their control."

"Just over a month left Neville, and you will see plenty of me this summer I'm sure."

"Yeah when your not having hot man sex with Lucius." Neville teased.

"You're just jealous the Fred and George won't let you have hot man sex with them."

Harry looked around and saw Fred and George both working around the shop outside his privacy bubble.

"So hows your courting of them going?"

"They won't accept my offer, they only know the bumbling me from school and so don't think they can ground them properly."

Harry looked at his glum looking friend. "So we just have to show them who you really are Nev. Which you seem to be doing a wonderful job at anyway. Once I'm settle in my alliance with Tom I'll hold a social duelling tournament for youth and invite both you and the twins." He smirked at Neville. "I'm sure that will get the message across nicely."

Harry took the privacy charm down as the twins moved to join them again, sharing a smirk with a much cheered up and slightly impish looking Neville.

"Oi what are you two yammering away about over here?" Fred threw an arm over one of Harry's shoulders while George did the same on Harry's other side.

"Nothing much, just catching Neville up on the recent events." Harry shared a smirk with Neville again.

"Well I best be off Harry. I presume I will see you sometime soon." Neville moved to hug Harry Harry was pretty sure he used his proximity to the twins to grope their arses teasingly. They both jumped and squeaked. Neville stepped back and smirked, "And I will see you pretties tomorrow, be good now."

Both twins flushed and spluttered as Neville left the store. They each grabbed one of Harry's arms and pulled him towards the door leading to their flat.

"We're off for the day, Verity." Called Fred.

"Lock up at five will you?" George added.

"We'll see you tomorrow!" They chimed together pulling Harry through the door and up the stairs.

"So," George started, pushing Harry into a chair and then heading to the drinks cabinet to pour them some Firewhisky. "How was the meeting with the super awesome Dark Lord?"

"Oh no, you aren't distracting me from you and Neville." He smirked as the twins huffed. "I will tell you about the meeting but then you will tell me all about the Neville situation!" He accepted the drink from George and sat back.

"The meeting went well. Tom and I are very much on the same page. I made him blush and then later choke on his food, which was amusing. We have an alliance, I am actually going to move into his manor today."

"What?"

"You can't do that!"

"That's like Death Eater Central!"

"Are you crazy?"

Harry raised his eyebrows, "It's the best option I have. It will help Tom and I build on our alliance. I will have plenty of opportunity to see Lucius and Draco. And it's not like the Death Eaters are a threat to me. I made their leader blush, I hardly think they're a threat. I am certainly not staying at the Dursleys' any longer."

He looked at George, "Speaking of which. I need one of you to apparate me to Privet Drive to pick up my stuff and tell the Dursleys I'm leaving."

"Sure thing Hart. Do you want to go now? I should probably change into some muggle clothes just give me a sec." He disappeared into what Harry presumed was the bedroom, and reappeared a few minutes later wearing muggle clothes.

Harry was impressed, George looked like a normal muggle. No weird or bright colours or anything. He stood up and moved to stand next to George, a minute later he and George appeared in the Dursley's back garden.

"Best stay out here, so my Aunt doesn't see you." Harry called over his shoulder as he strode towards the back door. He immediately headed to his bedroom where he quickly packed his trunk. Letting Hedwig out of the window he told her to meet him at Riddle Manor and then shrunk his trunk and pocketed it.

Once downstairs again, he stopped in the kitchen to speak to his Aunt.

"I'm moving out Aunt Petunia, hopefully you won't ever have to see me again." Harry couldn't help but feel a little hurt at the delighted expression on Petunia's face. Sure they didn't get along, but did his only remaining family have to look so delighted at that prospect?

"Don't tell any of my kind that I've gone. I figure four thousand pounds should be worth at least that much. I will send you the extra thousand pounds at the end of the summer, as long as you have followed my instructions." As she nodded in agreement he headed out towards the back garden so George could apparate him back. Harry refused to dwell on the hatred of his mother's family, he had a new family now. He would concentrate on Lucius and Draco and making sure that none of his children, including Draco, would ever feel as hated by their family as he had.

5-5-5

Once he and George were back at the flat again and he and the twins were settled in the living room chairs, Harry looked at them expectantly.

"So Neville, eh?" He laughed. "Verity was telling me how he wants to court you. Why did you refuse? He's a good guy, attractive, about to become a Lord." He put his hand up to stop them interrupting.

"You two are Idem Gemini twins and you always knew that one day you would need a third person to ground you. You know that all Idem Gemini twins need a grounder before they are twenty two or their magic kills them, so why not Neville? He obviously likes you guys, and it's blatantly obvious, to anyone who knows you, that you like him back, so why refuse?"

Fred looked at Harry helplessly, "He's Ron's age, Hart. One of the important parts of our having a grounder is that he is dominant to us, not it the way you will be to Lucius, but still. The idea of someone two years younger than us, someone the same age as our silly immature brother, dominating us is just strange."

"He's the same age as me as well." Harry pointed out. "Besides, I think he was doing a pretty good job at dominating you down in the shop earlier." He laughed as Fred blushed. "Seriously, give Neville a chance. He's far more like me than he is like Ron. He's a pureblood heir, who's been raised to take the Longbottom Lordship."

Harry met both of their eyes. "Just consider it, alright? You know I only want you to be happy, and I really think that Neville could do that." When they nodded he looked at his watch and stood up. "Oh, it's already four thirty. I want to pop into Meadowlarks to find a gift for Draco and Lucius before I pick up more of my wardrobe, so I'll see you later alright?"

After the farewell hug he had been ambushed with, Harry made his way down the stairs again and back out to Diagon Alley. He crossed the street and made his way into Meadowlarks: Only the Best Jewellery for Only the Best Wizards. A small rotund man greeted him as he approached the counter.

"Good afternoon, young sir. How can I help you today?"

Harry scanned the jewellery in the display cases before glancing up at the man he presumed was the jeweller.

"Yes thank you. I am looking for both a ring and a bracelet. The ring is for my stepson, as it were, and the bracelet is for his Father. They both need to be elegant and gently masculine.

The jeweller ummed and ahhed for a minute before looking sharply at Harry.

"What are their birthstones? Do you know?"

Harry racked his brain. He knew that Draco had just had his birthday so his was obviously pearl, but he wasn't sure about Lucius'. Suddenly he remembered a few years previously when he had heard Draco on the train to Hogwarts discussing what he was going to get for his father's birthday the next week.

"My stepson's is pearl, whereas his Father's is sapphire I believe."

The jeweller hummed and started to pull out multiple rings and bracelets with those stones for Harry to look at. After what felt, to Harry, like hundreds of options he finally found a bracelet and ring that he wanted to buy. After paying an inordinate amount of galleons for the jewellery, Harry left the store and walked over to Twilfit and Tattings. His clothes were ready, and so - after handing over more galleons – Harry shrunk down his purchases and walked over to Diagon Alley's Apparition Point. Then Harry activated his portkey.

5-5-5

Lucius was nervous. He was sitting in the Riddle Library again because he couldn't stop himself fidgeting due to apprehension, and Malfoy's did not fidget it public! It had been two hours since the Dark Lord - or Tom as he was now supposed to be calling him – had informed him that his dominant was moving into Riddle Manor this afternoon, and expected to see Lucius when he arrived.

"Calm down Luc, everything will be fine!" Severus had been trying to keep him calm ever since the news. It had been him who had suggested that Lucius go back to the manor to bathe and put on some finer robes, and Lucius was grateful because it had distracted him for an hour, but now he was thinking about all the things that could go wrong. He had been repressing his submissive nature for so long. What if he didn't act like a proper submissive any more? What if his dominant wasn't pleased with him? What if he rejected him? They had been on separate sides of the war for a long time. All the times that he had attacked or insulted his dominant where running through his head. He couldn't breath!

"It's alright Father." Draco's voice broke into his panic. "Deep breaths, everything will be fine." Lucius looked down at his son as he felt him cuddling up to his side. "Père told you that he would claim you, remember? And he accepted me. Everything will be alright."

Lucius looked up as Rodolphus came around the last bookcase.

"Potter has arrived Luc. The Dark Lord greeted him and is showing him his suite. He has asked that you meet him there." Lucius jumped up from the couch and quickly walked towards the library exit, before remembering that he didn't know which suite Tom had put Harry in.

"Do you know which suite Tom placed him in, Rodol?"

Rodolphus smiled at him. "He's in the suite opposite the Dark Lord's."

Lucius quickly left the library and made his way to where his dominant was waiting for him. When he reached the door, he took a deep breath and knocked. This was finally it. After two decades of longing he was finally going to meet and be claimed by his dominant.

"Enter." Lucius almost shivered at the sound of Harry's voice. He felt like such a witch. His hands were sweating as he opened the door and he resisted the urge to wipe them on his robes. Pushing the door open, he took a step inside and saw Harry sitting casually on the tall desk beside the window.

"Shut the door, little one."

Lucius turned and shut the door before looking back at his dominant. He was beautiful! His mate was so different than what Lucius remembered. The teen aged Gryffindor boy was gone and in his place was a powerful and confidant man. Lucius' fear of his dominant was only overcome by his arousal.

He watched as Harry beckoned him over with one finger and obeyed, quickly moving so that he was standing in front of his mate with his eyes respectfully diverted.

"It is wonderful to see you little one." His dominant's voice sent shivers down his spine, and increased his arousal tenfold. "I can't tell you how much I have been looking forward to claiming you."

Lucius glanced up at his mate and before he could look away, Harry had wrapped his legs around him. He felt himself being pulled closer to his mate until he could feel his dominant's arousal against his stomach. When Harry moved so his mouth was near Lucius' neck, he obediently bared his neck for his dominant to nuzzle.

Suddenly Lucius realised that Harry seemed to have come into his creature inheritance early. He tried to push his dominant away so he could inquire about it but froze as his actions provoked a angry growl from his mate. Lucius felt Harry rebuke him for his disobedience by sinking his teeth into his neck and decided that he would worry about details later.

He allowed himself to go as limp as he could while standing and let out a breath in relief as Harry released his neck and started licking the bite mark. He whimpered as Harry took both his mouth and legs away from him and just watched him for a moment.

"I will only ask you this once Lucius. Do you wish for me to claim you?"

Lucius wanted to scream at him. What kind of question was that? Of course he wanted him to claim him! He had only been waiting twenty five years to be claimed by his dominant.

"Yes, Dominant."

A delighted smiled crossed Harry's face. "I'm glad. Strip for me little one."

Lucius sucked in a deep breath. This was it. This was really happening. He had never had actual sex before, Draco had been conceived using a potion. As a teenager before his inheritance he had, like all purebloods, experimented a little but had been saving sex until marriage and, after his inheritance, his Veela hadn't allowed him to have any kind of sexual intercourse with anyone other than his mate. Even the times when he masturbated by necessity it had felt wrong, as though he was betraying his dominant somehow.

He finished unbuttoning his robes and slipped them off. As was pureblood tradition he was wearing nothing underneath them and he resisted the urge to hold the robes in front of himself to hide his nakedness. Feeling awkward and exposed he made quick work of his shoes and then stood, naked, in front of his mate.

"You are beautiful, little one."

5-5-5

And here would lie the first MA-21 scene. If you want to read it, the link to this story on Archive is on my Profile page.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes. They won't be published here, but you can find then on Archive of Our Own. The link is on my profile page.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

6-6-6

Harry strode down the stairs, into the entrance hall of Riddle Manor. Lucius was still asleep upstairs and, after putting a few finishing touches on the gifts he had bought, Harry had decided to see if he could find Draco.

He couldn't believe how amazing Lucius was! He was everything Harry could ever desire in a mate, so obedient and incredibly responsive. Normally he was so calm and dignified in public, but the way he had moaned - so wantonly – begging for his dominant's touch was beautiful.

He spotted a Death Eater he recognised and approached him, inclining his head and holding out his hand in greeting.

"Lord Flint."

He knew the exact moment Flint noticed the Peverell ring on his finger because his back straightened and he wiped the sneer off his face. Harry was really beginning to love the instant respect his titles granted him.

Flint bowed and kissed his ring. "Your grace. How can I serve you?"

"I am looking for Draco Malfoy. Do you know where I might find him?"

Flint looked at him curiously but simply nodded and pointed down a corridor.

"I believe that Draco is in the library, your grace. Would you like me to show you the way."

Harry agreed and then followed Flint down the corridor, they stopped outside a pair of ornately decorated double doors.

"This is the library, your grace. I believe that Draco and his Father favour the back right corner of the library." He bowed again. "Can I do anything else for you, your grace?"

Harry was slightly tempted to ask him to bring he and Draco tea and biscuits, it would be pay back for all the quidditch fouls Flint had orchestrated against him in school, but he refrained.

"No thank you, Lord Flint, I appreciate you assistance."

Flint bowed again and left as Harry turned to open the doors. He slipped inside and observed that the library appeared completely empty. He made his way to the far back corner of the library as Flint had suggested and as he got closer he heard the hum of voices.

"Checkmate!"

"Damn! Uncle Rodol, were you helping him? I can barely hold my own against Uncle Sev on his own, let alone when he has your help."

"Of course I wasn't helping him Draco, would I do that?"

"Yes! You most definitely... Père!"

Harry almost laughed as Draco bounced out of his seat and ran over to him. Draco paused in front of him not quite sure what to do, but when Harry let out a encouraging rumble he bared his neck and stepped closer so that Harry could nuzzle it. Harry then wrapped Draco in a hug.

He indulgently allowed Draco to lead him to the chair that had been unoccupied when he had arrived - Harry presumed that it was Lucius' chair - and let Draco push him into it. When Draco moved to sit in the remaining chair he growled and pulled him onto his lap. Draco didn't seem to mind as he cuddled against him.

"Père this is Uncle Rodol, and you know Uncle Sev. They're pretty much family."

Harry raised his eyebrows at the two men, his creature was unhappy at the unsanctioned additions to it's family, and he wasn't exactly thrilled to find that the man who had tormented him from first year was so close to his mate and son. Tightening his arms around Draco and pushing down the urge to growl at them and forbid Draco - and later Lucius – to ever speak to them again, Harry inclined his head in greeting.

"Professor Snape, Lord Lestrange."

"Mr. Potter." Snape didn't look any happier at the situation than Harry did.

Lestrange, however, stared at Harry's right hand and then abruptly stood and bowed to him, before returning to his seat.

"Duke Peverell."

When Snape shot a questioning glance at his friend, Lestrange looked pointedly from Snape, to Harry's hand and back then back to Snape. As with Flint, Harry could tell the exact moment that Snape noticed the ring, as a look of horror crossed his face. Snape stood, sneering with distaste, and bowed deeply.

"Your grace."

Harry shook his head. He thought that he would have felt at least some satisfaction at seeing Snape bow to him, but there was none.

"Please sit down Professor Snape, and call me Harry, or Mr. Potter, or even just plan Potter – whatever you choose. You as well Lord Lestrange."

Lestrange smiled, "Then you must call me Rodolphus, Harry. It is a pleasure to meet you. I have heard many things about you, and I must say that none of it does you justice."

Harry was sure that most of Lestrange's information had likely come from Snape.

"Père?" Harry shifted Draco so that he could see his face.

"Yes, Fiston?" Harry could see Severus' eyebrows rise out of the corner of his eye.

"Where is Father?"

Harry laughed, "He's having a nap. I'll wake him in a little while."

Draco nodded against him and seemed to snuggle deeper.

"Père?"

"Yes, Fiston?"

"How did you come into your creature inheritance early?"

Both Severus and Rodolphus shifted in surprise.

"I had an interesting meeting with the goblins this morning. They informed me that due to the fact that I was my Godfather Sirius' heir I was emancipated. They also informed me of all the titles I inherited and then performed a ritual that forced my creature inheritance."

"Sirius Black?" Rodolphus asked. "So you are Lord Black, Lord Potter, Duke Peverell and the de facto Lord Malfoy?"

"Yes, and Duke Gryffindor." Harry shrugged as both Severus' and Rodolphus' eyebrows rose. "It was rather a shock actually. When I woke up this morning I was just plain Harry Potter, the Potter Heir, and now I have more titles than I know what do with.

"Any way, Draco, I came to find you primarily to give you a gift." He breathed out sharply as Draco turned in his lap, elbowing him in the side.

"Really? A gift?"

Rodolphus laughed, "Now you've done it. Draco looses any sense of manners and finesse when gifts are involved."

Snape snorted, "What manners and finesse? You have to have some to lose them."

Draco ignored them, looking at Harry pleadingly. Harry pulled out the ring box he had bought from the jewellers and handed it to him. When Draco opened it his face lit up with joy.

"Oh it's beautiful, Père! Thank you!"

Draco took the ring out of the box and slipped it on his finger before wriggling out of Harry's lap and moving to show his uncles the ring. Harry smiled at how happy his gift had made his son.

"It is an emergency portkey, Fiston. I need to know that you are safe. If you are ever in trouble just say 'I want to be a muggle' and the portkey will take you somewhere I trust." He laughed at Draco's horrified face. "What? I had to choose a phrase that you would never say in conversation."

"Thank you, Père! I love it. It even has my birthstone on it!"

"Yes I know." Harry smiled at his three companions surprised faces. "You didn't think I chose a ring with your birthstone purely by chance did you Fiston? I wanted it to have special meaning to you." He pulled Draco into a hug before releasing him and looking him in the eyes. "This ring is a reminder to that I am your Père and that I care for you Draco. I know that this is all very strange, and that only a month ago we were screaming insults at each other in the school corridors. But things have changed and I want you to remember that."

Harry was pulled into another hug by Draco who had tears in his eyes. Yup, decided Harry, most definitely a submissive Veela. Père

"Draco? Does Tom hold dinner at a specific time?"

Draco looked unsure.

"Yes," Rodolphus cut in, "He does. Dinner is served in the formal dining room at eight sharp. That's in approximately forty minutes, I believe."

Harry decided that it was time for him to wake up his submissive.

"Will I see you at dinner Rodolphus? Professor Snape?"

"Yes. Both Severus and I are living here currently. My estates and vaults are still frozen by the Ministry and Sev doesn't like to stay at the castle during the holidays."

Harry nodded, "Right, I need to go wake up Lucius and dress for dinner. Will you keep an eye on Draco until dinner for me? " The newness of his position as Draco's father was making his Veela feel uncertain. Part of him wanted to take Draco back to his rooms and keep him and Lucius there indefinitely, but he knew that was unreasonable.

Draco huffed, "I am quite capable of caring for myself you know, Père, I have survived years without you."

Harry's Veela growled. How dare his offspring speak to him like that. He shut him eyes for a moment to try and get his Veela under control. This was all new to both of them, and the last thing Harry wanted to do was take Draco over his knee for such a minor offence. When he reopened his eyes he noticed that Draco was baring his neck to him looking very apologetic, he decided that he had likely growled out loud.

Nuzzling Draco's neck, he bit down gently.

"Don't be disrespectful Draco. I am your Père, however new this may be, and I guarantee you won't like the consequences."

"Sorry Père. I will stay with Uncle Sev and Uncle Rodolph until dinner."

"You're forgiven, Fiston. I know this Veela situation is new to you as well, but you need to remember that Veelas are very hierarchy focused and protective. At the moment my Veela wants to lock you away somewhere safe indefinitely, or at least until we become accustomed to our new relationship."

Harry noticed Draco's horrified expression. "Calm down Draco. I'm not actually going to do it. But you can help by not giving me any additional reasons to want to. Understand?"

Draco nodded subdued, so Harry pulled him into another hug. He felt as though he had been involved in more hugs today than his entire life.

"It's alright, Fiston, we will get the hang of this. I need to go see your Father, and you will stay here with your uncles. Yes?"

"Yes, Père."

Releasing Draco, Harry bid his goodbyes to the other men in the room before striding towards the library doors. He was anxious to see Lucius.

6-6-6

Lucius was still asleep when Harry entered the bedroom. He looked adorable cuddled up on the bed with his hair splayed out. Harry walked into the bathroom and ran a bath before heading back into the bedroom to arrange some clothes and other things for when Lucius woke up.

"Little one? It's time to wake up now?" He pushed some hair out of Lucius' face and shook his shoulder gently. "Wake up, little one."

Lucius' eyes opened and he seemed confused for moment before relaxing with a delighted expression when he saw Harry.

"Uh, Dominant? What should I call you?"

"You may call me Harry, little one." Harry noticed that Lucius winced as he tried to sit up.

"Yes Harry. But..." He paused to look up at Harry who nodded to encourage him. "It's just that I have been alone for so long and I would like to call you something to remind myself that I really have found my dominant."

Harry took a deep breath and strained to push down his arousal. For Lucius to call him something that reminded them both that Harry was his dominant was incredibly hot.

"If you are sure, little one, you may call me Domine. But know that it is your choice, you may still call me Harry whenever you wish."

Lucius still looked a little unsure. "Would it be alright if I called you Domine in private and around people who know of our creatures and mating, and Harry in public? It's not that I am ashamed of our mating, Domine, but they wouldn't understand and..."

"That sounds wonderful little one, I know that you have build yourself quite the dominant reputation, and I have no problem with it. As long as you remember that it is all for show and that I am your dominant, even in public." He watched as Lucius nodded. "I'm sure you're a bit sore so I have run a bath for you. Come on."

Lucius blushed."Yes Domine." As he attempted to stand Harry pulled him up helped him to the bathroom. He had decided to admit defeat in the war with his libido, between Lucius' words and his blush it was a lost battle.

He gently helped Lucius into the bath, and then removed his own clothes before settling behind him. He encouraged his submissive to relax against him as he slowly washed him. He washed Lucius' hair before helping him out of the bath, drying him and bending him over the bathroom counter to look at his slightly red and inflamed hole. Muttering a healing spell he was glad to see the inflammation disappeared entirely but the hole still looked slightly stretched. How he loved magic!

"Stay there little one." He moved into his bedroom to fetch some of the things he had laid out earlier. When he returned to the bathroom he was pleased to see that Lucius hadn't moved a muscle. Harry took a moment to enjoy the view from the doorway.

6-6-6

A.N. There is part of the scene missing here because it is rated MA. If you want to read the details you can read it on Archive. The link is on my profile page.

If not, just know that Harry puts a butt-plug in Lucius, and then they give each other blowjobs.

6-6-6

He allowed Lucius to lie on the bed as he got dressed. Pulling on one of his new formal robes - a dark green one with silver edging - he felt quite the Slytherin. After replacing the diamond stud in his ear with a dangling silver earring, and forcing his hair to behave using multiple products, Harry roused Lucius and helped him dress. He decided that Lucius would wear Harry's second formal robe - a deep purple coloured one - for two reasons. Firstly because the robe Lucius had worn earlier wasn't formal enough for dinner, and secondly because he loved the idea of his submissive wearing his clothing.

After drying and smoothing Lucius' hair, Harry realised that they only had five minutes until dinner. He hurried out of his suite striding down the hallway quickly, before realising that Lucius had fallen behind.

"Come on Lucius or we will be late." He glanced at Lucius' and was surprised to see a flushed expression on his face. "Is everything alright, little one?

"Domine, please! I'm sorry but I can't walk that fast. If I do then the..." He broke off with a blush and scanned the corridor to make sure they were alone. Harry suddenly figured out what was wrong but decided to wait for Lucius to tell him.

Lucius continued at a whisper, "Domine, when I walk fast the..." His voice got even quieter and he blushed darker, "...the plug hits my prostate, and I'm already so hard! I would be so embarrassed to walk into the Dark Lord's dining room aroused."

Harry smirked, how he adored Lucius. "I see no problem with that, little one." He stroked his submissive's cheek. "Your robes will hide your erection and only you and I will know it's there. Besides, little one, I seem to remember that earlier you were very willing to play this game for me." He rubbed his thumb over Lucius' lip. "Will you do this for me little one? Will you play this game for me?"

"Yes Domine." Lucius moaned wantonly as Harry rubbed his hard-on through his robes. "Anything for you Domine."

Harry could feel the delighted smile on his face as he grabbed on of Lucius' hand and strode down the hallway again. He knew that they would be late for dinner now, but he knew that Tom wouldn't be angry at him for it. Besides it allowed him to make an entrance with Lucius.

He stopped in front of the large wooden doors that Tom had pointed out as the formal dining room earlier and glanced at a flushed Lucius.

"Do you need a minute to calm down, little one? I know that your reputation is very important to you and I don't want to ruin that for you." He leaned against the door frame. "Just take a few deep breaths." As he watched Lucius attempt to gain control of himself, Harry was yet again astounded at how lucky he was. What a blessing it was to be this beautiful and responsive creature's dominant. He was brought out of his musings by Lucius.

"I am ready Domine. Thank you."

6-6-6

Lucius couldn't believe the position he was in. He was about to walk into the Dark Lord's formal dining room, to have dinner with said Dark Lord, with a plug up his arse and an erection. And he was thrilled about it. It wasn't that he was thrilled about the plug, but rather about what it represented. He had a dominant! After years of waiting he was no longer alone, and Harry was everything he had ever dreamed of in a dominant.

"I am ready Domine. Thank you."

He took few more deep breaths trying to will his blush to recede further. He was about to be in public with his dominant for the first time. He was quite nervous, if he was being honest with himself. How should he act? Where should he sit? What did his Domine expect?

Harry seemed to pick up on his worry, because he pulled Lucius into a soft kiss.

"Just be yourself little one. No need to stress."

With that, his Domine opened the doors and ushered Lucius through them. Everyone turned to look at them, and Lucius could feel his blush rising again. There were only two empty seats at the table both of which were next to Tom. He stopped for a moment unsure where to sit, but he was gently pushed towards the left hand seat but his Domine's hand on the plug. As he had made his way to his seat, every step causing the plug to move against his prostate, he realised that Rodolphus was seated at his other side.

When he sat down it was all Lucius could do not to jump up again, as the plug was pushed even further into his arse, but he couldn't the whimper that escaped. He looked up and saw his Domine was smirking at him from across the table, and felt his - seemingly ever present - blush darken as both Tom and Rodolphus gave him knowing looks.

"Good evening Lucius. I am glad you could join us this evening."

Lucius inclined his head at Tom, it was taking him a while to get used to treating the Dark Lord as a friend.

"Good evening, Tom. I do apologise for being late."

Tom smirked in reply, "Not at all. How was your afternoon"

Lucius glanced quickly at his Domine who was listening to the exchange. Now was as good a chance as ever to discover how his Domine felt about being teased.

"It was very quiet, Tom, nothing noteworthy happened at all."

Tom's eyebrows rose in surprise.

Glancing another look at his Domine he was pleased to note that he was sporting an amused smirk, Lucius took this to mean that he had gotten away with it, until the plug started to vibrate. It took all of Lucius' pureblood training to restrict his response to another whimper. He gripped onto a napkin trying to regain control. His Domine just shot him a wicked smirk and turned to Tom.

"Thank you for the suite, Tom, it is absolutely lovely. Would you be able to provide a second suite? Lucius will be staying with me, of course, and I would like Draco to be close."

Tom nodded, "Of course, I will have the House Elves prepare the suite next to your own." He stood up, causing the table to fall quite. Speaking louder he addressed the table. "You will have noticed that we have a new resident in the manor. This is Duke Harry Potter Black Gryffindor Peverell and he is here to arrange an alliance with me. If any of you are imbecilic enough to irritate him I will not intercede on your behalf." He paused as if daring anyone to challenge him, when none did he inclined his head. "Dinner is served."

Lucius stared at the food in front of him. Twice both a Duke and a Lord! That was unexpected. He resisted the urge to shift in his seat to try and move the plug into a more comfortable position, telling himself that he had more control than that! He looked down the table and nodded in greeting to Draco, receiving a small nod in return.

"How are you really, Lucius? Is everything alright?"

Realising that it had been Rodolphus who had spoken, Lucius turned to him with a smile.

"I'm fine Rodol!" He sighed happily, "Better than fine even. Everything is even better than I could have dreamed."

"I am glad, Luc. I met Harry earlier while you were sleeping, and I admit to being impressed by him. We should meet tomorrow so you can tell me all about your afternoon." Rodolphus' eyebrows wiggled teasingly.

"I would have to ask Harry, but unless he has any objections I would very much like to meet with you and Sev." Lucius turned to his dominant to ask him, but found him immersed in a conversation with Tom.

"That's alright Luc, ask him later. Do you know whether Harry will be duelling to gain a position in the ranks?"

"I don't know. We didn't exactly spend the afternoon talking, if you know what I mean." Lucius felt himself blushing again, and then squeaked as the plug's vibrations seemed to increase. He looked across to his Domine in shock and saw him watching.

"Are you alright Lucius? You look a little flushed."

"I am fine thank you, Harry." Lucius could feel himself blushing even darker.

"I'm glad." Lucius watched as his Domine turned towards Rodol. "I heard your question Rodolphus and I think it is an excellent idea." He turned to look at the Dark Lord. "Don't you agree Tom? That way nobody will be able to challenge my place because I will have earned it."

Lucius turned back to Rodolphus who was watching him teasingly. "What?"

"You squeaked!"

He blushed. "I did not! A Malfoy would never make such an undignified noise. You're hearing things Rodolphus."

"Yes you did. We were talking and then suddenly you jumped slightly, squeaked and your entire face flushed red."

Lucius felt his blush increasing and wished he was in the comfort of the library so he could hide his face behind a cushion. He hadn't realised that he had jumped

"What could make the great and dignified Lucius Malfoy squeak at the Dark Lord's dining table I wonder." Rodolphus mused.

Lucius decided that he wanted to cut this topic of conversation off quickly. "I'll tell you tomorrow if Harry agrees."

"But what if I want to know now?" Rodolphus teased.

"Rodol! I promise that if you drop this now I promise to answer any three questions you ask me tomorrow honestly."

"Ten." Countered his smirking friend.

"Five."

"Seven and you have no veto power on the questions."

Lucius cringed, he had a bad feeling about this.

"It's the best deal your going to get, Luc." Rodolphus smirked wickedly. "I would agree quickly before I call down to Sev that I just heard you squeak."

Lucius looked worriedly down towards Severus who was three seats down. "You wouldn't!"

"Can you risk that?"

"Seven, and I get to veto two if I need to." Lucius watched hopefully as Rodolphus seemed to consider it,he gasped as his friend turned toward the rest of the table and called out.

"Hey Severus!"

Severus looked up from his conversation with Rabastan with a scowl. "Yes Rodolphus? What is so important that you needed to gain the attention of the entire table?"

Lucius noticed that the entire table had stopped to watch the conversation.

"Fine!" He whispered blushing. "Seven, no veto power."

He took in Rodolphus' raised eyebrows. "Eight...Nine...Ten completely honest answers, no veto power. I'll even take veritaserum. Just please don't!"

Rodolphus' nod of agreement and subsequent conversation with Severus about something else had him sighing with relief and shifting back to lean against the back of his seat. He took in a deep breath as the vibrating plug moved within him. What a terribly embarrassing night.

As the dinner came to an end, Tom stood up again.

"As I said earlier Duke Peverell and I now have an alliance. He has requested to take part in a public duel be earn his place among us. That will be happening in the Duelling Hall in an hour and fifteen minutes. His first duel will be against Lord Flint, if he is victorious he will duel Severus, and then me. Attendance is mandatory." With that he swept out.

Lucius looked at his Domine in shock. In an hour? That was quick. Normally new recruits had to wait weeks to be given a public duel, but then his Domine was hardly a new recruit. He jumped slightly as he felt someone touch his arm. Looking up he saw that his Domine had moved while he was thinking.

"Are you ready to leave Lucius? I have a duel to prepare for."

"Of course." Lucius stood up and winced as the movement moved the plug inside him yet again. And now he had to walk all the way back to their suite with it still vibrating. He was so thankful for the robes hiding his arousal.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes. But they aren't posted here. You can find them on the Archive website. The link is on my profile page.

This story is AU, and students don't start at Hogwarts until they're 12.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

7-7-7

Harry strode out of the dining room. He was excited! Finally he would have the chance to showcase his duelling abilities. This was brilliant!

Once out of the dining room he stopped and waited for Lucius to catch up with him, before grasping Lucius hand and leading him back to their suite. When they arrived he sprawled himself out on the sofa, pulling Lucius down with him.

He had had a great conversation with Tom, although hearing the suspicion that Nott was abusing his son had pissed him off! He hated child abusers. He growled and hit the side of the sofa angrily, before freezing at the sound of Lucius whimpering in fright. Turning to look at him he saw that Lucius seemed to be trying to make himself as small as possible, baring his neck in Harry's direction as if in a plea not to hurt him.

Harry sighed. "Hey there little one. Calm down, it's alright. I'm not angry at you Lucius, I promise. I'm sorry for scaring you."

He rubbed his hand along Lucius' arms reassuringly, and, after a few minutes of Harry's hands becoming more explorative, Lucius's whimpers changed from scared to aroused. Harry stood Lucius up and helped him to remove his robes, before sitting down on the couch again with Lucius, on his back, draped across his legs. He played with Lucius' nipples, drawing out desperate mewls and whimpers from the man, which Harry was sure was a joint result of both the nipple play and the vibrating plug in his arse.

"You're so beautiful little one. So eager and responsive for me." He turned the plug off and changed his touches from playful to relaxing.

"We need to talk little one, are you with me?" He watched, amused, as Lucius looked at him with pleasure glazed eyes. "Come on Lucius, you need to concentrate, are you listening to me?"

"Yes Domine." Harry felt his arousal skyrocket from Lucius' response. Would he ever be able to hear those words without getting an instant erection?

"There are a lot of things we need to talk about little one. I had hoped to have more time tonight, but it would seem we only have another forty minutes until my duel, so we will have to make it quick.

"Firstly I need to know what you are doing about Narcissa?"

"I have filed for a divorce a few days ago, Domine. I have had evidence of her infidelity for years but haven't had any need to divorce her. The divorce should be finalised in a few days."

"I am so pleased, little one."

"I have been thinking that I would move into Malfoy Manor with out when Narcissa is gone. Are you alright with that?"

"Yes Domine, everything I have is yours."

Harry groaned as his arousal increased. "Such pretty words, little one, thank you. Both you and Draco will stay here at Riddle Manor until then. I do not want to let you out of my sight."

"Yes Domine." Harry almost groaned again as Lucius looked up at him with innocent questioning eyes. "Domine?"

"Yes little one?"

"Rodol asked whether I could meet him and Sev tomorrow. I told him that I would ask you first."

Harry smiled, delighted that Lucius had asked him. He knew that after a few days both he and Lucius was settle down into their roles and neither would feel the need for Harry to have such total control, but for now it was an amazing feeling.

"Domine?"

Harry was pulled out of his thoughts. "What little one?"

"May I meet with them?" Harry decided that those eyes should be illegal. He remembered that muggles described them as 'puppy dog eyes' and he could see why.

"You may, little one. Would you like to meet them here or in the library?"

"Here if it isn't to much trouble, Domine. I wouldn't want to disturb you."

"Here is fine. I have some meetings that I can distract myself with."

"Domine?"

"Yes little one?"

"They are going to ask me some questions about you. May I answer them?"

Harry laughed. "Oh yes, what was it? Ten questions, no veto power and even veritaserum?" He tweaked Lucius' nipples gently, as his mate blushed. "You may answer all of their questions Lucius."

Harry gently moved Lucius off him and onto the couch before standing up.

"Stay here, little one."

Quickly striding into the bedroom he found the jewellery box containing Lucius' bracelet, before returning back to the couch and resuming his previous position with Lucius across his lap.

"I got you something little one." He handed Lucius the box. "It is a reminder to you that you are now longer alone. I am here to look after you now, and I always will be."

Harry watched as he gently opened the gift, pleasure welling in his chest at Lucius' look of delight.

"Oh thank you Domine. It's beautiful!" He handed it to Harry. "Will you put it on me please?"

Harry smiled and gently lifted Lucius' left wrist to put the bracelet on it.

"It is also an emergency portkey, little one. Something to to keep you safe." He finished placing the bracelet on Lucius and dropped the wrist. "The activation key is 'I love the Weasleys'. I wanted to pick something that you would never normally say." He was slightly confused at the lack of horrified look the phrase had garnered from Lucius. He had been expecting a reaction similar to Draco's.

"Something you want to tell me, little one? I expected more of a reaction from you. Have your feelings about the Weasley's changed?" Harry felt his eyebrows rise as Lucius nodded. "Tell me about it, little one." He commanded.

"Well, Domine, Tom helped actually." Harry felt his eyebrows rise even further. "We were talking about my family and the Weasleys came up."

"I didn't know you were related to the Weasleys?" Harry queried.

"Yes Domine. My Mother's father was Lord Weasley in his time."

"Lord Weasley, Lucius? I wasn't aware that the Weasley House was Ancient and Noble?"

"Yes Domine. Arthur Weasley should be the current Lord."

Harry was feeling a little confused. He would have thought that after being friends with Weasley's for five years he would have at least known that their Father was a Lord. He wondered why the twins had never told him.

"Tell me why you no longer hate the Weasleys, Lucius."

"Tom told me about how the current Weasley Malfoy feud began, Domine. Apparently when Mother came into her inheritance and recognised Father as her mate, Mother's family, especially her brother Algernon, refused to let her bond with him until my Grandfather, Scorpius, got a Wizengamot ruling. Something to do with the Malfoys being a prominently dark family, any way that's not important. Algernon only had one son, Septimus, and apparently he was much nicer than his father. Arthur is Septimus' eldest son." Lucius paused looking up at Harry.

"This is all very interesting little one, but it doesn't explain why your opinion of the Weasleys has changed."

"Sorry Domine. I realised that mostly I just feel sorry for Arthur. I would hate to be in the situation he is."

Harry sighed. Somehow Lucius had gone from over explaining to under explaining.

"And what situation is that Lucius? Explain it to me with a little more detail than that."

"Well the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley is actually very well off, almost as well off as the Malfoys, Domine."

Harry frowned. "So why are they so poor then?" He glanced down at his mate's long-suffering expression.

"I was just going to explain that Domine!" Lucius huffed.

Harry grinned and twisted one of Lucius' nipples causing him to arch off the couch.

"Come now little one," He smirked. "No need to rude."

"Sorry Domine, it won't happen again." Harry didn't think that Lucius looked very sorry at all. "If I may continue Domine?"

Harry grinned and twisted Lucius' other nipple inciting the same reaction. "Of course little one, please do." He laughed at Lucius' half hearted glare.

"It is said that when Arthur Weasley was young he was blackmailed into marrying Molly Prewett. But to ensure that the Prewetts didn't bring the House of Weasley to ruin, Septimus and Arthur arranged it so that as long as Arthur was married to her, Arthur was cut off from anything attached to their Ancient and Noble House. When I heard that I realised that I felt sorry for Arthur, I am also impressed by the level of dedication he has shown to protecting his House."

Harry was feeling shell shocked. What? But Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had always seemed so close. He knew that Mrs. Weasley tended to boss Mr. Weasley around but he would never have guessed this. As much as he didn't want to believe it, a part of him could imagine Mrs. Weasley doing that. He wondered whether Fred and George knew? Or Bill, Charlie and Percy?

"That's a heavy accusation Lucius. Are you sure?"

Lucius shrugged, "I think so Domine, though I am only repeating what Tom told me. You should probably get another opinion. You could ask Rodol, he loves keeping up to date with all the gossip surrounding noble wizarding Houses."

Harry sighed, it was hard to believe.

"I will, thank you Lucius." He glanced at his watch, before shifting Lucius off his lap again. "The duel is in twenty five minutes little one, time to start getting ready."

He watched as Lucius slid off the couch and moving to kneel at his feet, sucking in a deep breath when Lucius blushed and looked up at him through his eyelashes.

"May I please suck you first, Domine?"

Harry quickly undid his robe. What a question! Like he would ever refuse, he was still a seventeen old teenager for Merlin's sake.

"Of course you may, little one."

7-7-7

The sex scene is on Archive of Our Own, look for it there. Also Lucius doesn't have anything in his arse anymore. :)

7-7-7

"Right, little one. Time to get dressed I think. Do you want to wear my formal robe again or a more casual one?"

Lucius was still gasping in arousal when he answered, "A more casual one please, Domine."

Harry nodded and led Lucius into the bedroom. He picked out a green robe for Lucius, making adjustments so it would fit him, before pulling out his new duelling robe. As he and Lucius were dressing he looked over to see Lucius looking at him with worry.

"Is everything alright Lucius? What has you so worried?"

"What if you get hurt, Domine?"

Harry wasn't sure whether he was pleased that Lucius cared enough to be worried or offended that Lucius doubted him. He pulled Lucius into a hug.

"Everything will be fine little one. I promise you that I am a lot better dueller than I have previously appeared." When Lucius looked at him doubtfully he laughed. "You're just going to have to trust me, Lucius."

"Yes Domine."

Harry smiled and then led Lucius out of their suite. He had a duel to attend.

7-7-7

As Draco followed his Uncles into the Duelling hall he spotted his Father and his Père across and quickly made his way to them. He threw himself into his Père's arms and nuzzled at his shoulder in an attempt to calm his nerves. What if his Père got hurt?

"Shhh, calm down Fiston." He could feel his Père's chest vibrating as he purred comfortingly. Draco clung to his Père even as he felt him sitting down. His Père then drew him onto his lap and continued to purr. As he started to relax further he realised how different his Père's embrace was from his Father's. Snuggling closer to his Père he noticed that even though his Père was smaller than his Father, Draco still felt safer in his arms. How strange it was to think about feeling safe in Harry Potter's arms.

Looking up he realised that his Uncles had joined them, and that he was getting some confused looks from the other Death Eaters present. He supposed that seeing Draco Malfoy snuggling in the lap of his arch rival was probably a strange sight.

"Are you feeling better now Draco?" He could feel his Père's chest rumble as he spoke.

"Yes thank you Père. I just don't want you to get hurt."

Draco could feel his Père chuckle. "You and your Father both. I will be fine Fiston. I promise. We aren't out to kill each other, it's just a case of show casing my abilities. Tom didn't pick people that hate me," Draco felt the chuckle again. "Well, he didn't pick people who want me dead anyway. Right Professor?"

Draco looked up in time to see his Uncle sneer at his Père, causing his Père to laugh loudly.

"Harry." Draco whipped his head around to look at the speaker. When he saw the Dark Lord he tried to get up so he could bow, but was held in place by his Père.

"Tom. Is it time to start?"

"Almost. Are you prepared?"

"Don't tell me you are worried about me as well Tom?"

Draco watched as the Dark Lord scowled, causing his Père to laugh again.

"Don't fret Tom. I will be absolutely fine and I promise not to damage your Death Eaters too badly."

The Dark Lord's scowl deepened and he stalked towards the chair reserved for him.

Looking around Draco noticed that his Father and Uncles looked just as horrified at the encounter as he felt. Teasing the Dark Lord was not something sane people did. But before anything more could be said the Dark Lord called for everyone's attention and his Père stood up, pushing Draco into the chair he had just vacated.

Draco listened carefully as the Dark Lord stated the rules of the duel.

"This is a friendly duel, and as such you may not use any spell that kills instantly. We have no need for seconds otherwise, normal duelling rules apply. Duellers take your places."

Watching as his Père walked towards his position opposite Marcus, Draco found himself pressed up against his Father for comfort. He really didn't want his Père to be hurt, but he had seen him duel in the past – in fact he had duelled him in the past – and he was a terrible dueller. His Père didn't stand a chance.

He watched as the two duellers, standing ten feet apart, bowed to each other.

7-7-7

As Harry bowed to Flint he felt like smirking. He was really looking forward to the looks on everyone's faces - Tom and Snape's in particular - when they realised how much he had been holding back in the past.

"Digito explodere!"

Harry spun out of the path of the spell, sending his own back. "Caecus! Impedimenta! Lacarnum Inflamarae!" He had never understood why most people sent one spell and then waited for their opponent to return another one before casting again. He watched with pleasure as the shielding spell Flint had cast only blocked the first two spells before letting the third one through. The fire ball hit Flint on the shoulder causing what looked like a very painful burn.

"Protego." Harry's shield blocked the purple Conjunctivitis Curse that was flying towards him. Before he returned another set of spells. "Everte Statum! Rictusempra! Crucio!"

Harry smirked as Flint, having not learnt from last time, blocked the first two curses but fell prey to the Cruciatus. He held Flint under the curse, dispassionately watching him scream and writhe, before taking the curse off and stunning him while he lay on the ground recovering.

With the duel won he turned towards Voldemort and, savouring the slightly surprised expression on his face, twirled his wand in his fingers. "I did tell you that I had been holding back didn't I?"

He then smiled reassuringly at his mate, before turning back to the spot where Flint had lain – though now Snape stood there.

He and Snape eyed each other up before bowing and then simultaneously casting their first spells.

Harry dodged an unknown spell, while Snape blocked the Entrail Removing Curse Harry had cast. It didn't kill instantly...as long as a healer was there within three minutes, the victim would be fine.

"Levicorpus! Confringo! Obscuro! Steleus!"

"Stupefy! Transmogrify! Lapidem Viscera! Conteret Os!"

Harry almost laughed in delight as he and Snape danced around one another. He hadn't had a good duel like this ever! He sent a Spine Crushing Curse and dodged a Skull Crushing Curse, then he sent a Castration Curse while dodging the Cruciatus Curse. Back and forth they went dodging and blocking spells and sending them back.

Eventually Harry decided that he should end the duel, he still had to duel Tom and he imagined that he would need all his strength for that.

"Anguis Sortem Oppugno!" Harry was very proud of this curse, he had created it himself to make use of his parseltongue ability in a duel. It conjured over one hundred snakes, whose bite instantly knocked the victim unconscious, and sent them flying towards the enemy. "Bite him!" Harry commanded.

While Snape was occupied with the snakes Harry cast another spell he had created, a wordless and almost colourless stunning spell. It only really worked if the opponent was distracted but fortunately Snape was. Snape slumped unconscious as the spell it him, and Harry vanished the remaining snakes.

Harry turned to look at Lucius as Snape was rennervated and Tom took his place. Lucius and Draco both looked shocked that he had beaten Snape. He winked at Lucius before turning to Tom.

They both bowed and then smirked at one another before casting their first spells.

"Ignea Mortem!"

"Lapis Caput!"

"Stiria! Pugionibus! Adolebit!"

"Duratus! Costis Pulveris! Crucio!"

Back and forth the curses flew. Harry was in his element, while he had enjoyed his duel with Snape it was nothing like duelling Tom. They really were each others equals - while Tom had more years of experience, Harry had more power.

As he dodged a blood removal spell – he was pretty sure that one caused instant death – Harry considered how much his life had changed in twelve hours. He had three more titles than he had expected, he had claimed his soul mate and now he was fighting a friendly duel with Tom.

"Digito explodere!"

"Transmogrify!"

"Lapidem Viscera!"

"Conteret Os!"

"Everte Statum!"

Again and again Harry and Tom attacked one another with spells. Spinning away and around, it was fantastic but as they reached the half hour mark without a single hit they started to slow their attacks.

"Expelliarmus!

"Impedimenta!"

They stared at each other.

"I'm satisfied if you are Harry?"

Harry smirked in agreement. "Agreed Tom. Truce?"

"Truce." They nodded to one another before bowing slightly to one another and turning to the room.

"I think that it is obvious to everyone here that Harry has earned his place at my side." Tom announced loudly. "I'll repeat what I said earlier, annoy or disrespect him at your own risk. I won't protect anyone from his wrath. In fact I strongly suggest you treat him as you do me."

Harry walked over to where Lucius and Draco were sitting with Rodolphus and a recovered Severus. He took in their amazed looks and smirked. Looking closer at Lucius he realised that his face was flushed and his pupils were slightly blown, so his display of power had aroused his little mate had it? Interesting.

"Père!" Harry took a step back to balance, as Draco threw himself into his arms. "You were amazing! At first I was really worried, because you've always seemed so terrible at duelling! But you were fantastic! Will you teach me me, Père? Please!"

"Of course I will, Fiston." He sat down in Draco's seat and pulled the boy onto his lap. "And I know that I have always seemed to terrible at duelling. It was very purposeful, I assure you. I didn't want Dumbledore or his minions to know that I actually excelled at anything. I still don't actually."

He turned towards Snape. "Good duel Professor! I really enjoyed it. I would very much appreciate it if you could teach me that first spell you used one day. I don't think I have ever come across it before."

Snape scowled at him, but nodded slightly. Knowing that was all he would get out of Snape, Harry turned towards Lucius who still looked flushed. He smirked inwardly, he was so looking forward to getting his mate back to their suite.

"And how about you little one? What did you think? I did tell you to trust me, didn't I?"

"Yes Domine, you were amazing!" Lucius blushed and looked down. "I had no idea you were so powerful."

"Yes Harry!" Rodolphus added. "You were very impressive. A vast improvement from last week I think." He smirked at Harry and then Lucius. "Very thrilling to watch."

Harry almost snorted in amusement as Lucius' blush deepened.

"Harry!"

"Good duel Tom! I've never had the opportunity to enjoy a duel like that before, thank you!"

"Yes likewise. It was a very enjoyable duel. It has been many years since I have been able to indulge like that. We have that meeting we discussed tomorrow. Would ten in the morning be a good time for you?"

Harry cocked his head to the side. "Yes ten would be excellent I think." Turning to Lucius he asked, "Have you arranged a time for Rodolphus to meet with you little one?"

Lucius shook his head so Harry turned to Rodolphus. "Is ten a good time for you? I promised Lucius that I would be out of his hair during your visit so he can answer all questions honestly." He shared a wicked grin with Rodolphus.

"Oh, yes ten would be wonderful. Wouldn't it Sev?"

"Ten? For a meeting with Lucius? I'm sure I can fit that into my calendar." Severus scowled again but everyone ignored him.

"Wonderful!" Harry stated. "So ten tomorrow Tom, I guess I will see you then. I presume you will arrange the other factors?"

"Of course. Good night!"

As Tom strode away Harry turned back to Lucius. "Shall we move this back to our suite? Everyone is welcome. I had a question for Rodolphus, if you remember?"

"Of course Domine." Lucius nodded before turning to his friend. "Is now a good time Rodol? You and Sev could both come back to our suite for some Firewhisky if you wished."

Both Rodolphus and Snape agreed, albeit reluctantly on Snape's behalf, and so Harry and Lucius led the others to their suite.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes. But they aren't posted here. You can find them on the Archive website. The link is on my profile page.

This story is AU, and students don't start at Hogwarts until they're 12.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

8-8-8

When the group reached the suite Harry sat in the middle of the couch and gestured for the others to sit as well. As Draco snuggled up beside him, he considered the extreme difference their creature inheritances had made. Two months ago he and Draco couldn't share a class without insulting one another, and here they were snuggling. He looked up at the sound of his mate's voice.

"May I get you a drink Domine?"

"Yes thank you little one, a firewhisky sounds wonderful." He looked across to Snape and Rodolphus. "What about you two?"

Severus scowled at him. "Firewhisky."

"Me too please." Rodolphus added.

Harry nodded and turned to Draco. "Draco?"

"Um, Butterbeer please."

Lucius turned and bent over to retrieve bottles from the drinks cabinet, Harry spent a moment enjoying the view of his mate's arse.

When Lucius had served the drinks, choosing an Elderberry wine for himself, Harry pulled him down onto the couch and against his other side. Lucius snuggled against his side and then looked up.

"You really were amazing tonight Domine. Who taught you? And when?"

Harry smiled widely. Up until an hour and a half ago, no one had seen him duel properly. There had been no one to praise him and tell him that he had done well. To hear his mate of all people praising him now was a wonderful feeling.

"I started teaching myself in first year after Tom tried to kill me in the forest. By then I had started to figure out that Ron and Hermione weren't the friends I had originally though they were, and that Defence Against the Dark Arts wasn't teaching me the things I needed to know to survive. It went from there. When Hermione was petrified in second year, I realised that she and Ron were doing everything they could to stop me from studying so I started studying in secret and playing dumb in classes. My OWL results will give me away though." He added thoughtfully. Looking up he saw that the rest of the rooms occupants were obviously waiting for him to continue.

"The Room of Requirement was incredibly helpful. Have you heard of it?" At their nods he continued. "I found it in first year. At first I just used it when I wanted some peace. But then I realised that if I wanted it to, the room could make time slower inside than outside. That's how I managed to study in secret. I would leave for a thirty minute walk and manage to study for around five hours. The room provided the books and targets as well. Wonderful, wonderful room that one!"

Draco uncurled from his position against Harry's side to look up. "That's amazing! You must have studied heaps to have gotten that good."

"Yeah, I normally studied for about thirty hours a week. It was very intense and tiring - I ended up having naps in the room and in my classes to catch up on sleep - but well worth it."

"Didn't you age through that extra time? That would make you about six months older." Snape asked dourly.

"No Professor, the room always gave me just enough De-aging Potion to reverse the effects. As I said, brilliant room."

Sipping on his Firewhisky Harry leaned back and looked over at Rodolphus and Severus who appeared amused and were scowling respectively.

"Rodolphus, I heard that you are quite the gossip monger when it comes to purebloods. I was wondering whether you could confirm a rumour I have heard."

Rodolphus looked intrigued. "And what rumour would that be?"

"Molly Prewett blackmailing Arthur Weasley into marriage, causing Arthur to give up all access to the Weasley family title or money while married to her."

Harry could feel Draco jolt in surprise next to him, Severus looked just as surprised.

"Ah, that rumour." Rodolphus sighed. "A very unfortunate story that one. However did you hear of it? It isn't well known at all."

Lucius sat up slightly against Harry. "I told him. Tom told me about a week ago. We were talking about the Malfoy family line, and that naturally led to Weasley family."

"I'm related to the Weasleys?" Draco sat up abruptly causing Harry to spill some of his drink. "Sorry Père, it's just that...how are we related to the Weasley's? I know our family tree back to from eight generations. I have studied our family tree, and I would have noticed if there were Weasleys on it! Oh Merlin, I'm related to the Weasel!"

Harry joined the other three men in their laughter, before nudging Lucius to answer.

"Calm down little Dragon. Your Great Great Aunt was a Weasley, but she was disowned when she married into our family. That's why you wouldn't have seen the Weasley name on the family tree. It's shocking isn't it? I only found out about a week ago."

Harry decided to get back on track. "So is it true Rodolphus?"

Rodolphus nodded solemnly "Yes it is. It was all very sad. Arthur Weasley is a good man, nothing like his grandfather. The one who disowned your Aunt." He added for Draco's benefit.

"Will someone please tell me the story!" Draco pleaded looking confused.

"Very well..."

As Rodolphus told Draco the story, which seemed to be identical to the one Lucius had told him, Harry occupied himself with Lucius.

"How are you little one?" He whispered against Lucius' ear.

Lucius shivered and snuggled closer. "I am very well thank you, Domine." He looked around quickly before continuing to whisper. "I am aroused though, Domine! Your duelling was very good."

Harry chuckled softly kissing Lucius' ear softly. "Horny are you little one? Here? In front of your friends and our son? You're not thinking dirty thoughts about how I will use you when they are gone, are you love?" He laughed again as Lucius moaned softly and gripped him tightly before turning back to the end of Rodolphus' story.

"...lived in almost poverty for years now, all to ensure that Prewett harpy doesn't get a hand on anything belonging to the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley."

"Ancient and Noble! Really?" Draco looked amazed. "What was the blackmail Uncle Rodol?"

"Nobody knows for sure. But we were all suspicious that it had something to do with the younger Weasley son. He was trouble! Very rebellious and was constantly getting mixed up in things no well-bred pureblood wizard should. It is very unlikely that Arthur Weasley actually did anything worthy of blackmail, like a saint that man is."

"I have a question." Harry spoke up. "Is there anyway to free Mr. Weasley? I'm good friends his five oldest sons and I would love to be able to have solution when I tell them all this."

Snape looked at Harry appraisingly. "You will tell them the story?"

"Of course sir. They above anyone deserve to, and need to, know." Harry answered evenly.

"Yes of course." Rodolphus frowned slightly. "I haven't actually seen the marriage contract, but it is open for public viewing. I don't imagine it would be that hard to break the bond, permanent marriage contracts were outlawed in 1868. Arthur would probably be your main obstacle, I'm sure he has a reason he hasn't left by now."

Harry smiled broadly, relieved by the answer. He knew a lot about magical history and law, but hadn't read up on marriage law yet.

"Thank you Rodolphus."

"Not at all Harry. Thank you. It's not often I get to indulge in a little story telling. Perhaps you would likewise indulge us a little with your and the Dark Lords plans?"

"Of course. It won't be long though, I want to get Lucius to bed soon." He smiled wickedly and winked at a laughing Rodolphus.

"Pere!" Draco whined sitting up. "That's gross."

Lucius just hid his face his Harry's side, while Snape scowled.

"Hush Fiston." Harry pulled Draco against his side again. "Where to start. Keep in mind that these are just ideas we came up with over dinner, we in no way have an actual plan yet. Lets see, together we have absolute control over Hogwarts what with him being Duke Slytherin and me being Duke Gryffindor. But we don't want me to be declared as 'Dark' or publicise my Dukedoms too early so instead we plan to use our newly gained control of the School Board of Govenors.

"We have the Black, Malfoy, Parkinson, Flint, Potter, and Zabini seats. And by the end of summer we will definitely have the Longbottom seat and hopefully the Weasley one. Which, if I can convince McLaggen and Boot to vote with us, leaves Dumbledore with only Diggory seat on his side. He will have the Longbottom seat until August, but we still have majority. So we plan to make a lot of changes to Hogwarts before next term. New classes, new teachers, new rules, lots of things really. Oh and a new Headmaster as well."

Harry looked around and saw that everyone was riveted.

"I will be bringing my allies into the fold as it were, and we will be working on getting the two groups to work together. We have a lot of new laws we want to introduce, we want to put Dumbledore up on charges and get Ministry Pardons for Tom and people like Rodolphus here. But Hogwarts is our first priority, children are our future and all that. Oh and I plan to play matchmaker a bit for some friends of mine."

"And you and the Dark Lord decided all this over dinner?" Snape asked slightly faintly.

"Well no, some of it was over lunch." Harry admitted.

"That all sounds amazing Père. Who are you matchmaking for?" Draco asked from his place against Harry's side.

"Neville Longbottom and the Weasley twins. They will be great together. He's already courting them and they are close to accepting I think, they just need that little push." He smiled wickedly. "And lucky for them it's a push I am very willing to provide."

"Longbottom?" Snape asked in disbelief. "You really think that pathetic clumsy buffoon can handle two people as irritable and unreasonable as the Weasley twins?"

"Come now Professor, surely you have learnt tonight that people can have very convincing masks? Neville is much more than he appears. He is much more like the real me than the one I portray at school."

"But they're twins Père! Isn't it a bit weird?"

"They're Idem Gemini twins Draco." Harry answered looking down at him fondly.

"Really? Wow that's really rare. And you really think that Fat...I mean Longbottom can ground them? I don't mean to disrespect your friend Père, but Uncle Sev is right. He's kind of pathetic."

Harry raised his eyebrows at Draco's slip. "Oh I know that Neville can ground them. I would be careful if I was you, he really is much more than he appears.

"Alright, since you are all so distrustful I will arrange a dinner party for you to meet the real Longbottom heir. One of those 'my allies meets Tom's allies' things. We can have a mini duelling competition for the youth before hand. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like fun Père." Harry noticed that Draco didn't look all that enthused.

"I'll invite Zabini, Nott, you, Fred, George and Neville. It'll be a perfect opportunity for me to work my matchmaking magic as well."

Draco looked a little more excited about the knowledge that he would have friends there as well.

"You won't be duelling though will you Père? Because that would be unfair, you're far to good."

Harry laughed again, "No Fiston, I won't be duelling. I can maybe give out some advice if people want it." He looked across to Rodolphus and Snape. "Will you join us for dinner at least that night? I'm sure Lucius would appreciate the adult company."

Rodolphus looked slightly worried about the idea. "Are you sure that's a good idea? The last person the Longbottom Heir is going to want to see is me."

Harry shook his head. "No don't worry, he doesn't have a problem with it. We talked about it this year when I told him that I was going to attempt to meet Tom this summer and asked if he would follow me. He understands that it was in a war and you were following orders. Besides, we all know it wasn't actually you who tortured them."

"You do?" Rodolphus looked stunned.

"Well to start with it's not your M.O. You're much more of a planner. You take no joy in death or torture. Besides, in your trial you only admitted to being at the Manor when it took place, while Bellatrix gleefully admitted to torturing them."

Harry looked at the slightly dazed faces of Lucius, Rodolphus and Snape and blushed slightly.

"We researched a lot. I wanted to know exactly I was walking into if I joined Tom. So, will you come?"

Rodolphus looked more enthusiastic than Draco had been. "Absolutely! I love dinner parties. Can I come early and observe the duelling as well?"

"Absolutely! Maybe I'll invite the older Weasley boys as well." Harry trailed of thoughtfully before turning to Snape. "What about you Professor? Will you come?"

Snape scowled. "It's school holidays! Why would I volunteer to spend time with Weasleys and Longbottom in the holidays?"

"Oh come on Sev!" Lucius sat up and looked pleadingly at his friend. "It'll be fun! I promise that you won't have to talk to them, we adults can sit at the other end of the table and talk about politics."

Snape's scowl softened slightly. "Very well, Luc. But only for you. Now I will take my leave, I have things to do tomorrow besides this gossip session Rodol has blackmailed you into."

"What?" Rodolphus spluttered indignantly. "Sev, how could you? I would never..." He trailed off when he realised his audience were all very unsympathetic. "Fine, I'll come with you Sev. Good night Lucius, Harry, Draco."

Lucius stood up to show his friends out as Harry hugged Draco.

"Bed time Fiston. What are your plans tomorrow?"

Draco sighed. "Nothing much. I was thinking about doing some of my Summer Homework. Get it out of the way and all that. Maybe I could meet Teddy or Blaise. I've barely seen them since school got out."

"Sounds good Draco. I think I'll probably go to Diagon Alley tomorrow for lunch. If you wanted to come with me and meet them there?"

"Thank you Père! I'll Fire-call them in the morning and ask." Draco stood up before giving Harry another hug. "Good night Père. I'm glad you're here."

"Me too Fiston. Sleep well!"

Harry remained on the couch as Lucius and Draco said goodnight to one another. When Lucius came back having shown Draco out he smirked lecherously at him.

"I think you're wearing too many clothes little one. How about you get out of those robes now that our guests are gone, hmm?"

Lucius blushed immediately. "Yes Domine." He quickly dis-robed.

Harry sighed happily and stood up to give Lucius a kiss.

"You are beautiful little one. Bed time now I think." He gently pulled Lucius into their bedroom before pushing him into the bathroom with a gentle pat on the arse. "Go brush your teeth and do anything else you need to do before bed."

While Lucius was in the other room Harry quickly put the lube on the bedside table before pulling back the blankets on the bed. He retrieved the robe from the lounge and put it in the hamper. Having spent years as the Dursleys' House Elf, he found he was always concious about how much work he was leaving actual House Elves.

Lucius was back by the time he had changed out of his own robe and Harry took a moment to enjoy the view of his mate standing naked in their bedroom waiting for Harry to instruct him. Life was good!

8-8-8

There would normally be a sex scene here, if you want to read it the link is on my profile page.

8-8-8

When Lucius woke up the next morning he realised that he was spooned against Harry with his Domine's arms around him, it felt wondrous. He could hardly believe that he had found his mate. After so many years of looking for his other half and then believing that he would never have one – he had been claimed.

His Domine was rich, and powerful and an incredible dueller – it was almost too good to be true. Over the years when he had considered what it would be like to have a mate. He had worried that he wouldn't be able to be happy as a submissive after so many years of playing dominant. What if he couldn't happily follow orders? But he was, happy that is. When his Domine commanded him or expected him to act submissively it gave Lucius a thrill that acting dominantly never had. He felt content and safe, cared for and loved. It was a good feeling.

When his Domine moved on his back in his sleep, his grip on Lucius loosening, Lucius got an idea.

8-8-8

There would normally be a sex scene here, if you want to read it the link is on my profile page.

8-8-8

"Good morning little one!" Harry greeted him happily. "That was a marvellous way to wake up! Thank you."

Lucius blushed, feeling a little shy over his spontaneous actions. "Good morning Domine. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, I had a wonderful sleep. How about you? What's the time? Do you know?"

"I slept like a baby, Domine." Lucius quickly cast tempus. "It's nine twenty eight Domine, we seem to have slept in."

Lucius chuckled as his Domine jumped out of bed. "Nine twenty eight? Oh Merlin I have a meeting with the Dark Lord in thirty minutes."

Lucius relaxed in the bed while his Domine was in the shower, then he had a thought.

"Guppy?"

He started slightly at the cracking noise the house elf made as it arrived.

"Yes Master Malfoy sir. How can Guppy be helping you?"

"Both Draco and I will be staying here for the next few days. Me in this room, and Draco is another one. We will both need plenty of clothes for our stay, as well as our personal grooming items. See that they are packed and delivered quickly. I will need a robe in fifteen minutes."

"Yes Master Malfoy. Guppy will be doing that now sir."

It was nine forty-five by the time Lucius' Domine exited the bathroom in only a towel, still dripping slightly from the shower. Lucius just stared at his Domine. His body was amazing!

Lucius blushed as his Domine laughed at his dazed expression. He watched as his mate finished drying himself and dressed. His Domine was wearing robes that definitely displayed his noble status.

"Lucius? I will be meeting with the Dark Lord until twelve, then I need to go to Diagon Alley. Would you like to join me for lunch?"

Lucius sighed happily. "That sounds lovely Domine."

"Wonderful." His Domine pulled on some shoes before casting the tempus charm. "Oh Merlin, I'm supposed to be meeting the Dark Lord in five minutes. Professor Snape and Rodolphus will be here in five minutes too, little one."

Lucius jumped out of bed quickly before realising that he was naked. Blushing, he made a dash for the bathroom.

"Lucius. Come and give me a goodbye kiss first. I will be gone by the time you're finished in there."

Lucius turned and slowly made his way over to his smirking Domine forcing his hands to stay at his sides and not try and cover his nudity. He jumped slightly as slightly cold hands grabbed him into an embrace before his mouth was covered by his mate's. When he was released from the kiss some time later he was panting with need.

"Much better little one."

Lucius almost groaned as he saw his Domine smirking, he was starting to learn that nothing good came from that smirk.

"Tut tut little one. No time for that now, we both have meetings in about three minutes. No jerking off in the shower Lucius. If you're good I might let you come at lunch."

Lucius moaned as the hand was removed from his cock and his Domine left. He hated that smirk! He made his way to the shower trying to think of anything to deflate his erection. Suddenly he froze in the door. Lunch? But they were having lunch at Diagon Alley, and Malfoy's did not partake in sex in public places!

A.N. This chapter is dedicated to a good friend of mine whose nickname really is Guppy.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible. Thanks for reading

9-9-9

As Harry rushed out of his suite, he realised that he didn't actually know where the Dark Lord's office was. Sighing, he decided to walk to the entrance hall and try and find someone to give him directions. He was only half way there when he ran into Snape and Rodolphus who were obviously heading to their meeting with Lucius.

"Good morning Professor, Rodolphus, would you be able to help me with something?"

"Good morning Harry." Harry wasn't at all surprised when it was Rodolphus who answered him. "What can we do for you?"

Harry looked down sheepishly. "I have a meeting with Tom that was supposed to start a few minutes ago, but I have realised that I have absolutely no idea where his office is? Could you point me in the right direction?"

Rodolphus laughed at him. "Sure. If you can get yourself to the entrance hall, then go down the hallway next to the statue of the two fighting hippogriffs. The Dark Lord's office is the first room you see with double doors."

Harry memorised the instructions before nodding. "Thank you so much." Turning to leave, he paused and then turned back. "Uh, Lucius is running a little late this morning as well, so just let yourself in and make yourself at home. I'm sure he won't be too long."

"Had a busy morning did you?" Rodolphus leered.

Harry winked at him before making his way to the entrance hall, and then down the hallway Rodolphus had described.

When Harry came to the double doors he was amused to note that there were some chairs outside them, similar to his old muggle primary school's Principle's office. Two of the chairs were occupied, one of the people he recognised as Theodore Nott, the other he presumed was his father.

"Potter?" Nott stood up and drew his wand, the other man stood up as well but forced his son's wand arm down before bowing.

"Be quiet, you imbecilic child!" The man hissed before turning to Harry. "Good morning Duke Peverell."

Harry almost laughed at the surprise on his schoolmate's face, but he nodded with a blank expression and then raised an eyebrow. "Nott. Perhaps you should take the next few minutes to explain to your heir the events of yesterday evening?"

"Of course, your grace." Harry nodded again before entering through the double doors, closing them behind him.

The room was large. There was a big desk which was covered in papers, as well as a sitting area around a fireplace. Tom looked up from whatever he was reading at the desk.

"Good morning Harry."

"Morning Tom, sorry for being late. Lucius and I slept in."

Tom looked at him with raised eyebrows before snorting. "Sure you did."

"No seriously, we did." Harry sprawled out in a chair in front of the desk. "So what exactly are we doing here? I know last night you mentioned something about dealing with one of your Death Eaters transgressions, and I presume that you mean Nott, seeing that he is just outside. But what transgression? And why exactly am I here?"

Tom stood up and came around the desk to sit in a chair beside Harry. "You are correct about Nott. As to why you are here, you need to get used to being part of these meetings and I presumed that given your past you would have a interest in this particular case. Well that, and I need your assistance with part of it."

Stretching his legs out further, Harry nodded. "Right. What's his name? I can't keep calling him Nott because I have called his son that for five years now."

Tom laughed. "Ah yes. I had forgotten that everyone calls one another by their last names at Hogwarts. It used to be a sign of the natural hierarchy you know. A recognition of the other person's place in society. These days it's primarily used to show disdain for the person, even if their family name is higher than your own."

Harry stared at Tom, amused by his tangent. "As interesting as that is Tom, what is Nott senior's name? And what exactly has he done?"

"His name is Theodred. We went to school together. He didn't have his son until he was quite old, around sixty, and his wife died in childbirth. He's never quite been the same." Tom seemed to shake himself out of his thoughts. "As to his transgression, it was suggested to me a few days ago that it is likely that he abuses his son."

Harry scowled angrily at the thought, and Tom nodded at him. "Exactly. So today we will discover whether or not he is mistreating his heir, and if he is then he shall be dealt with accordingly."

"Right. The minute long interaction I had with them in the hall before would suggest that Nott is at the very least being verbally abused, Tom."

Tom sighed sadly. "Yes, Lucius was the one who brought this to my attention, and he is very rarely wrong about such things."

"So, what exactly do you need me to do? And how do you plan to deal with him?" Harry paused. "I don't know whether killing him would be the best option here." He continued quickly to cut off Tom's attempt to argue. "That's not to say he doesn't deserve death, but whether or not he is an abusive bastard – he is Nott's Father. We can and will separate them, but I doubt that Nott wants his Father dead."

Tom scowled at him. "That is your plan isn't it. To come in and logically convince me not to kill people."

Harry laughed. "Course not, but if we kill Theodred, Nott may never forgive us. Maybe we should ask Nott what he wants done to his father."

"Fine." Tom sounded a little sulky, causing Harry to smile.

"You still haven't told me what you need me to do."

Tom looked slightly sheepish. "Well it's more you and Lucius actually. If you hadn't mated I would ask Lucius, but since you have it affects both of you."

Harry narrowed his eyes.

"Obviously no matter what happens to Theodred today, young Theodore will need a new place to live. And as Theodred is already good friends with Draco, and Lucius is my most trusted Death Eater who actually has parenting experience..." Tom trailed off and Harry glared at him.

"Tom! You can't seriously be suggesting that Lucius and I adopt Nott? He's the same age as I am!" Harry shook his head violently and sat up straight.

"Draco is older than you and you have claimed him as your son." Tom reasoned.

"That's entirely different and you know it." Harry argued. "We have creature inheritances that assist us."

"Theodore is almost a year younger than you." Tom replied. "I'm not even sure how he managed to be accepted into your year."

Harry sprawled himself out again. "Tom, even if I adopted 'Theodore', there is no way he would accept me as one of his parents – let alone the head of the family. He would always be looking at Lucius for instruction and that wouldn't work because Lucius will always be looking to me for instructions."

Tom looked at Harry pleadingly. "He might understand it if we explained it to him. Pureblood youth are taught about these things, even the ones from the lesser classes such as the Notts. Look at it from my perspective Harry, I have a pureblood child who has most likely been abused since he was young. I need to place him in a pureblood family that I trust. A family I know will understand what he has gone through and help him. Who else besides you and Lucius?"

Harry sighed and glared at the Dark Lord. "Fine, we will give him the opportunity. But first I want to ensure that Lucius is amendable to the idea, I refuse to simply come home after the meeting and inform him that we have managed to acquire another son."

Tom smiled at him victoriously. "Wonderful. Write a note to Lucius and we can send it with a House Elf. We can question Theodred while you are waiting for a reply."

Nodding in reluctant agreement, Harry accepted the quill and parchment Tom passed him, quickly composing a note to his mate.

"Tom? How do you plan to ensure that Theodred tells the truth?" Harry asked as he handed his note to a House Elf Tom had called. "Take this to Lucius and wait for a reply." He commanded before turning back to Tom for the answer.

Chuckling darkly Tom moved to sit behind the desk again. "A mixture between a truth spell and violent threats. It's not normally as reliable as Veritaserum, but when cast by someone as powerful as you or I it does the trick." He gestured to the door. "Go call for Theodred, then come back and stand against the wall beside me and look threatening. It will assist with the violent threats part of the plan."

Harry laughed as he stood and walked to the door. "How did I ever saw you as completely evil and serious?"

Tom chuckled as Harry opened one of the doors. Harry smirked darkly as he saw both Notts spring to their feet and bow. It was a wonderful feeling to be powerful and respected, heady even.

"Theodred we are ready for you now." Harry held the door open for the other man to enter, before turning to the younger Nott. Theodore was still bowing, much lower than his father had, and had a slightly fearful expression on his face. Harry supposed he might have a similar expression in Theodore's place. To have a schoolyard rival whom you have mocked regularly rise to a position of power, as Harry had done, had to be disconcerting.

"You may sit and wait Theodore. This shouldn't take long." Harry then re-entered the office and shut the door behind him. Moving to stand against the wall beside Tom, it didn't take much of an effort for Harry to glare hatefully at the elder Nott who was sitting tentatively in a chair across from the desk.

"Good morning Theodred." Tom's voice sounded different then it had during his and Harry's conversation earlier, a dark edge had replaced the earlier friendly tone. "I imagine you are wondering why is you have been summoned to my office today." He continued without giving the nervous Death Eater time to reply. "You are here because I have heard an unpleasant rumour about your doings and wish to learn the truth."

Harry sneered as Theodred's expression quickly became more frightened. Where was this man's pride? The strength of character not to show fear even in the face of death? Perhaps it was only upper class purebloods who learnt such things. This man was almost eighty and he was looking terrified already, the threats hadn't even started. He would be sure to teach Theodore proper pureblood manners.

Harry almost flinched at that thought. What the hell? Only five minutes earlier he had been arguing against the idea of taking in Theodore and now he planned to ensure he was raised properly? He could feel the Veela in him purring at the idea of adopting Theodore and this time Harry was so surprised he stopped glaring. Since when did Veelas adopt children that weren't their mate's? It wasn't in any of the books he had read! And when had Nott become Theodore in his mind?

Theodred's voice pulled him out of his startled thoughts. "I swear my lord, I would never do anything to displease you!"

"Crucio!"

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes, it would appear that Tom had moved straight past the violent threats and onto actual violence. He stepped forward and placed a hand on Tom's shoulder, distracting him from the spell.

"Tom have you cast the truth spell yet?"

Tom glared up at him. "Of course I have, but it's not helping."

Sighing again Harry gestured to the Death Eater who was pulling himself back onto the chair. "May I?"

Leaning back in his chair and twirling his wand, Tom nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

Harry smirked. He had always wanted to interrogate someone. He pushed some papers out of the way and jumped up so he was sitting on the desk.

"Theodred." Harry swung his legs slightly, wishing – not for the first time – that he was taller. "You say that you would never do anything to displease the Dark Lord." He paused waiting for the trembling man to reply.

"Y-yes, your grace."

Harry sneered at him, so pathetic! "Do you claim to know the inner workings of your lord's thoughts?"

"No, your grace. I would never..."

"So you would never knowingly displease him, but it is very possible that you have accidentally displeased him."

"Yes, your grace." The trembling seemed to have increased.

Harry leaned back on his hands and swung his legs a little again. "Did you know, Theodred, that both the Dark Lord and I had unhappy childhoods?"

Theodred went white. "No, your grace."

"Ah well, that's too bad." Harry swung his legs a little more. "Now that you know though, I imagine that you know where I am going with this."

"Yes, your grace." Theodred put his face in his still trembling hands.

"Oh good." Harry smiled darkly. "We are getting somewhere at last. Tell me Theodred, do you think we would describe your son's childhood as unhappy?"

Theodred just nodded.

"And would you by any chance be one of the reasons why we would describe his childhood as unhappy?"

"Yes, your grace." Theodred let his hands fall limply to his sides looking even paler than before.

Theodred flinched when a House Elf popped into the room causing Harry to smirk.

The House Elf held out a piece of parchment to Harry. "Stomp has a reply from Master Harry Potter Black Peverell Gryffindor's mate, Master Harry Potter Black Peverell Gryffindor sir."

Closing his eyes for moment, Harry ignored Tom's quiet snickers behind him and took the parchment.

"That will be all." Harry unravelled the parchment before reading it.

_Domine,_

_If it is your will that we adopt the Nott boy then I fully support you. I believe young Theodore would profit greatly from the support of our family._

_See you at lunch,_

_Lucius_

Looking up from the parchment, he passed it to Tom, before turning back to Theodred.

"Now where were we?" He asked the Death Eater in front of him. "Do you beat your son, Theodred?"

The Death Eater brought his hands up as if to try to prevent the answer from escaping. "Yes, your grace."

Harry growled slightly before nodding. He did like this truth spell, he would have to have Tom teach it to him, it made the victim truthful whilst keeping their honest reactions.

"Do you magically curse your son?"

"Yes, your grace." Theodred looked horrified at the words coming out of his mouth.

"Do you degrade him? Call him names and tell him he is worthless?"

"Yes, your grace."

Harry looked behind him and saw that Tom was glaring hatefully at his Death Eater his wand clutched tightly in his hand.

"One last question, Theodred." Harry paused to stare at Theodred for a minute. The man looked terrified. He was pale and and sweating, and his trembling had grown more pronounced so that his entire body was shaking in fear.

"How do you feel about your son?"

"I hate him!" Theodred spat, his hatred seeming to overrule the fear. "If he hadn't been conceived my darling Isla would still be alive." He sneered angrily. "I would have killed him when he was a babe if I hadn't needed an heir."

"Right then." Harry wandlessly stunned the man before turning to Tom. "Well that went well."

Tom stood up angrily. "Well? The man admitted to abusing Theodore out of some misguided idea that it was Theodore's fault his wife died."

"I never said that part was good, Tom. I only meant that we have the information we need." Harry slid off the desk before taking up position against the wall again. "Right, shall we continue then. I'm supposed to meet Lucius for lunch in... tempus... in an hour, and I imagine that our discussion with Theodore will take some time."

Tom sighed and sat down again. "Give me about five minutes to calm down and to send Theodred to the dungeon."

Nodding Harry moved towards the fire. "Alright, mind if I make a firecall?"

"Go ahead, Floo Powder is in the green bowl on the mantelpiece." Tom waved him away.

Harry grabbed some Floo Powder and flung it in the fire. "Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes!"

The fire flamed green and Harry knelt down and put his head in the fire. "Fred? George?"

"Mr Potter?" It was the shop girl Harry had met the day before, Verity or something.

"Yes, could you please get me either Fred or George." Harry shifted slightly at the uncomfortable position. Why couldn't wizards just get cellphones, or even just home phones?

He waited for a few minutes until he saw Fred come into the room. Fred looked surprised to see him but moved to sit in front of the fire.

"Morning Hart. What can I do for you today?"

"Hey Fred." Harry smiled and then grimaced slightly when he remembered what he was firecalling for. "I need you to call an emergency family meeting for me."

Fred stared at him shocked. "Seriously? Why? What time?"

Harry grimaced again. "It'll be easiest if I tell you all together. Today at about one would be best. I know it's really late notice, but it's important. "

Fred nodded. "Gotcha. Who do you want there?"

"Just the five of you. Oh, and I'll be bringing Lucius with me, so let everyone know before hand about our mating and all that."

"Sure." Fred stared at Harry seriously. "How bad is this Hart?"

"Bad. Nothing life threatening, but it's really bad."

"Right." Fred seemed to force himself to be jovial again. "Don't worry about anything, everyone will be here at one."

Harry smiled. "Thanks Fred. I need to go, I'm in the middle of a meeting with Tom, but I'll see you later."

"Righteho. Seeya Harry." Fred returned Harry's smile, though he seemed worried.

Harry backed out of the fire and ended the connection.

When he turned around, still brushing off his robes, he saw that Theodred had been removed and Tom was looking a lot calmer.

"Ready to go again Tom?"

At Tom's nod, Harry moved to the double doors again. Harry opened them and watched as Theodore jumped to his feet to bow again.

"Come in Theodore." He commanded holding the door open.

Theodore looked shocked at Harry's use of his name, but he quickly obeyed - scurrying through the door. He stopped as soon as he entered.

"Where is my father?"

Tom scowled at him. "Sit down boy."

Harry sighed as Theodore scrambled to a chair before sitting nervously on the edge of it. Casting a privacy spell around himself and Tom, Harry glared at the Dark Lord.

"Be nice Tom."

"But.." The Dark Lord tried to argue.

"No, you need to be nice." Harry interrupted. "You said yesterday that you planned to change the way you interacted with your followers, well, now is a good time to start." He gestured to Theodore who was alternating between staring at them and his lap. "Theodore is a scared, abused child who is about to have his life turned upside down by us. You need to be nice."

Tom scowled at Harry, but then nodded and schooled his face into a more genial expression.

Harry then moved to his place at the wall and took down the privacy spell.

"Theodore." Tom started in a much kinder voice. "I called you and your father here this morning because of a rumour I heard a few days ago. Unfortunately for your father, it turned out to be true."

Theodore looked at them sadly. "Oh. Is my father dead then, my lord?"

Tom sighed and leaned back in his chair. "No, well at least not yet."

Theodore did not looked encouraged, so Harry moved forward.

"You see Theodore, both the Dark Lord and I had unhappy childhoods." Harry ignored Tom's glare and continued. "So when someone told us that they suspected that you also had an unhappy childhood, we were not amused."

Theodore was looking at his hands, and Harry gestured for Tom to talk.

Tom sighed. "At first I was just going to kill your father and be done with it." Theodore gasped and looked up quickly before his gaze returned to his knees. "But then Harry convinced me that it wasn't the best course of action."

This time Theodore stared at Harry in shock as Tom continued. "So here is how it is going to go. It is your decision what happens to your father. Whatever you decide you will not be returning to his care, but it is your decision what I do with him."

Tom sighed again, and Harry wondered whether he was worried about going soft. Theodore was still staring with Harry in shock.

"Well?" Tom asked gruffly. "What do you wish for me to do with him?"

Theodore's eyes moved quickly to Tom, before going back to his knees. "M-may I have time to consider it, my lord."

When all Tom did was scowl, Harry replied for him. "Of course you may."

"Thank you, your grace." Theodore clasped his hands together, before unclasping them. "So, what happens to me now, my lord?"

Tom stopped scowling and looked quickly at Harry who nodded and moved to sit in the seat next to Theodore.

"Well," The Dark Lord started. "I will be putting you with a new family. One who I trust will care for you properly." Tom scowled again at the reminder of Theodore's old family.

When the silence drew out Theodore looked up again, first at Tom then at Harry. "Uh, thank you, my lord. Have you chosen a family for me?"

Tom sighed, leaned back in his chair and then looked pointedly at Harry. Harry glared at Tom before answering in his place. "The Dark Lord has asked that Lucius and I adopt you Theodore."

Theodore jumped at that. He stared disbelievingly at first Harry and then Tom, then he moved to stare at Harry again. "But...but you're my age." His voice broke slightly. "You aren't even seventeen yet. We go to school together."

Harry sighed tiredly. The morning had been exhausting and he had only been awake for two hours.

"Yes, we know all of that Theodore. If I wasn't mated to Lucius then Tom would have only asked Lucius to adopt you, but I am mated to Lucius."

Theodore looked confused. "You're mated to Lord Malfoy? But that means Draco..." He trailed off and looked down.

Harry glared at Tom who grudgingly nodded before speaking up.

"Theodore. I know that this sounds like a strange idea, but it is for the best. Harry is the head of four noble families, five if you consider that he is the head of the Malfoy family; he is mated to one of my most trusted followers; he has an active role in parenting one of your best friends – new though that may be; he is my equal both when it comes to magic ability and his place in the Dark Order; he also has experience with dealing with what you have gone through."

Theodore still hadn't looked up, but his shoulders looked less tense which Harry thought was probably a good sign. Tom continued.

"Even if you choose not to live with Malfoys – and you do have a choice – you will still have to be respectful to and obey Harry. He is both a Duke twice over and my equal, the only difference will be that you will have more situations in which you will have to obey if you were adopted by him and Lucius."

Harry hadn't actually thought of that. It was quite an exciting thought, all of the Death Eaters had to obey him now, and all purebloods would be respectful. It would certainly make school more interesting come the new school year.

Theodore was looking up now, staring at Harry again.

"Would I still be Nott, my lord?"

Tom nodded. "Yes, you would, however, also have the protection of the Gryffindor, Peverell, Black, Potter and Malfoy families. If Harry was agreeable you could be adopted into one of those families and carry their name as well as the Nott one."

Nodding, Theodore continued to stare at Harry. "And what are my other options?"

Tom sighed and leaned forward so his elbows were on the desk. "Well I could ask the Parkinsons, Bulstrodes, or Crabbes I suppose. Marcus Flint, Rodolphus Lestrange and Severus Snape are also options but they are all childless bachelors and I am reluctant to place you in their care."

Theodore turned to look thoughtfully at Tom. "Very well, my lord. You are right I think, Lord Peverell and Lord Malfoy are definitely my best option. I consent to being adopted by them."

Tom smiled broadly. "Excellent!" He reached for one of the many pieces of paper on his desk. "I have the form that needs to be filled out right here. Your father has already filled his part out, all that is needed for Harry and Lucius to complete the rest of it and submit it to the Ministry."

Harry stared at him. "What? When did that happen?"

Smirking Tom waved his arm towards the fireplace. "While you were making your firecall. You and Lucius are heading into Diagon Alley today aren't you? Maybe you could hand the paperwork in then? It would like to have this sorted as quickly as possible."

Glaring Harry stood and grabbed the piece of paper. "You're a horrible manipulative bastard of a Dark Lord!"

Tom snorted. "No fighting in front of the little minion Harry."

Harry turned around and saw that Theodore was looking at them in stunned silence.

"Ah, right...tempus." Harry looked at the time and sighed. "Time to go Theodore. I need to talk to Lucius before we go to Diagon Alley."

Harry stood up and smiled at Tom. "Oh, one last thing Tom. I'm planning a 'my teenage allies meet your teenage allies' friendly duelling tournament and dinner thing in three days, so on Monday. Rodolphus is planning on coming to observe the duelling, and then he and Professor Snape will be joining us for dinner to keep Lucius company. Anyway, I just thought you should know since it is your manor I will be hosting it in." He grinned cheekily at Tom.

Tom sighed and rolled his eyes. "Right, so my manor will be overrun by teenage wizards on Monday. I'll be sure to put in my schedule so I can avoid it."

Harry laughed. "Exactly! Lucius and I will hopefully be moving our family back to Malfoy manor sometime next week." He paused turning to look at Theodore, before returning his gaze to the Dark Lord. "Which reminds me, I need another suite for Theodore. On the same hall as Lucius and my one."

"Sure, I'll have the House Elves put him in the one opposite Draco's. I'll have all of Theodore's things moved as well."

"Great." Harry replied, already moving towards the doors. "Thank you, have a good day and all that. Come along Theodore."

Theodore scurried after him quickly with his head down and Harry sighed, how had he gone into the meeting with one son and come out with two?

9-9-9

Just a reminder that for every hundred reviews, I'll post an additional chapter. So instead of just getting one chapter a week, you will have two.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

9-9-9

By the time Lucius exited the bedroom, he saw that his friends had already made themselves comfortable on the chairs. They both had drinks in their hands, and when Lucius walked in, seemed to be in an argument about Quidditch. It was an endless argument between the two of them as Severus an avid fan of the Appleby Arrows and Rodolphus supported the Wimbourne Wasps.

They looked up when Lucius entered and both smiled in greeting.

"Morning Luc!" Rodol's smile transformed into a smirk. "Busy night or busy morning? Or was it both? You are mated to a teen-aged boy after all."

Lucius blushed and sat down, before realising he was hungry. He looked up at his friends.

"I'm going to have some breakfast. Would you like some?"

"No thanks Luc." Sev smiled at him again. Lucius was glad to see him smiling, he had scowled so much the night before. Though he thought that probably had something to do with Severus' hatred of his Domine.

"Oh Merlin!" Lucius gasped. "Domine didn't have any breakfast! What if he gets hungry." He leant back against his chair horrified. "I'm a terrible mate, I can't even keep my dominant fed!"

Noticing Severus and Rodolphus exchanged amused looks he glared at them.

"This isn't funny! I have been mated for less than twenty four hours and I'm already failing at it."

Lucius could feel tears pricking at his eyes and cursed his submissive hormones that being mated seemed to bring out.

"All these years I was so afraid that if I found my mate one day, I wouldn't be any good at being the submissive. I have spent so long pretending to be dominant, and I was scared that if one day I didn't have to be strong anymore I would be bad at it. And I was right! I'm a terrible submissive!"

Lucius wiped the tears off his cheeks, Merlin, being around his Domine made him such a girl.

"Lucius, Luc look at me."

Lucius looked up and saw the Rodolphus was crouched down in front of his chair.

"Luc, none of that is true. You are a wonderful mate. Severus and I saw you and Harry last night, and you both looked very happy. He couldn't keep his hands off you, and when you served the drinks he looked so proud to be your mate."

Lucius sniffled and smiled weakly at the memory of the previous night.

"And Luc you have to remember that it's not your responsibility to ensure that Harry eats. He's an adult who is completely capable to arranging to eat all by himself, if anything he is responsible for ensuring that you eat."

Nodding, Lucius could feel himself flushing in embarrassment at his outburst.

"You're right of course, Rodol. I'm sorry for my dramatic tears." He wiped away the remainder of the tears and looked over at Severus who was looking awkward. He had never been good with emotional moments. "Sorry Sev."

Severus shook his head. "No need to apologise Luc, we know that your mating will leave you extra emotional for a little while. It's not your fault." He gestured at a plate of all Lucius' favourite breakfast foods that was sitting on the coffee table between them. "I ordered you breakfast."

With a grateful smile Lucius conjured a small table in front of him and put the plate on it, so he was able to eat gracefully. They sat in comfortable silence as Lucius speedily ate his way through the plate of berry covered waffles. When Lucius had finished the last mouthful he turned his attention to his friends.

"What did you think of my Domine?"

Rodolphus smiled. "I liked him. Certainly not what I expected Harry Potter to be like. Especially after all the stories I've been told." He turned to look a scowling Severus. "What'd you think Sev? He certainly isn't anything like you have described him from your experiences teaching him at Hogwarts."

Lucius felt his face fall as Severus just scowled. He had really wanted his mate and his friends to get along, but that didn't seem to be happening. Not with Severus at least.

"He is tolerable." Severus admitted, though Lucius thought that it seemed to take a lot of effort on his behalf. "He is certainly nothing like the idiotic child from my Potions class."

Lucius felt himself cheer up a little at that admission. Maybe all was not lost.

"Now," Rodolphus smirked wickedly and rubbed his hands together. "I seem to remember ten questions that you promised would be answered truthfully."

Lucius groaned and leant his head back against his chair.

"Now I know you agreed to use Veritaserum, but Severus was telling me about this handy new truth spell he created for the Dark Lord. Which I thought would be perfect..."

Rodolphus trailed off as they stared at the House Elf who had appeared in front of Lucius.

"Stomp be being told to give this note to Master Harry Potter Black Peverell Gryffindor's mate."

Rodolphus and Severus burst into laughter.

"Seriously?" Severus asked as Lucius took the parchment from the Elf. "They're calling you Master Harry Potter Black Peverell Gryffindor's mate? That's hilarious!"

Lucius glared at him before turning his gaze back to the House Elf who was staring at him expectantly.

"Stomp being told to wait for Master Harry Potter Black Peverell Gryffindor's mate's reply." The Elf told him earnestly.

Lucius nodded and unrolled the parchment.

_To My Little One,_

_I hope you are having a good morning with your friends. Remember to eat. _

_Tom has informed me that Theodore Nott will be soon needing a new home and family. Tom in his infinite wisdom, has decided that you and I should adopt him. _

_I am amendable to the idea, however, as you will be equally effected by this I wish to ask your opinion on the matter. _

_I look forward to seeing you at lunch,_

_Your Domine._

Lucius looked up from the letter and over to his friends who were watching him expectantly.

"The Dark Lord wishes for my Domine and I to adopt Theodore Nott." He told them in amazement. "The note is from my Domine asking my opinion."

He looked back at the letter, to read it again.

"The Dark Lord does remember that Theodore already has a father, doesn't he?" Rodolphus asked.

Lucius passed the letter to Severus. "I told him a few days ago about Draco and my suspicions that Theodred was abusive towards Theodore. Maybe he decided to do something about it."

"Yes that is likely." Severus commented, still reading the letter. "The Dark Lord has a particular hatred for child abusers. Chances are Theodred is dead."

Severus passed the letter to Rodolphus. "It is good of Potter to ask your opinion on the matter, certainly helps improve my opinion of him."

"Yes." Lucius mused quietly. "He certainly didn't have to. Many dominants would simply expect me to comply with their wishes on the matter. At first he simply requested I call him Harry, I was the one who requested to call him Domine."

"Luc, from what I have seen, he's a good man." Rodolphus looked up from the letter, passing it back to Lucius. "So, what is your opinion on adopting Theodore. You and Harry have only been mated for a day, adopting a child – especially an abused one – will be hard work. Particularly as this child has spent five years as one of Harry's school rivals."

"Rodol's right." Severus agreed. "You and Draco both have Veela instincts which have cause your transition from Potter's enemies and rivals to his family, Theodore won't have any of that. He will find it very hard to respect Harry as the head of your home, and will likely constantly be looking at you as the authority figure."

Lucius leaned forward thoughtfully. "Stomp. Could you get me some Pomegranate Juice while you wait for the reply?"

"Oo, good idea!" Rodolphus held up his empty cup. "Pumpkin juice for me."

Severus squeezed the bridge of his nose. "I'll have some Blishen's Firewhisky, Elf. I have a feeling I'm going to need it when Rodolphus pulls out his list of questions for you Luc."

Stomp nodded and popped away, before returning seconds later with a tray of drinks.

Each of the men accepted their drinks from the elf before taking a mouthful.

"I don't know." Lucius sighed. "Being adopted by us is the best possible option for Theodore I think, and it would seem the Dark Lord agrees. But you're right, it will be difficult, especially for my Domine." He paused to take another sip of his drink. "Draco is likely to be in two minds about the matter. On one hand he will be thrilled that his best friend is away from his father and is living with us, on the other hand he will probably feel jealous of the attention Theodore gets for a while. He has always been an only child, and it could be a difficult adjustment."

Lucius groaned and hit his head of the chair behind him. "I just don't know. I want to say yes. I really like Theodore and always enjoy his visits. But what if my Domine can't handle the extra pressure? He hasn't even settled into our family yet and we're considering adding another person."

"Calm down Luc. He didn't ask you for your opinion on whether he could handle it. He has obviously already considered it and decided that this is something he can manage." Severus stretched his legs out and crossed his ankles. "Potter asked whether 'you' could handle it. Whether or not it is something 'you' want. As much as I hate to admit, Potter has a good head on his shoulders and is far older than his years. If he thinks this is something he can do then it is likely that he is right."

Rodolphus nodded. "You don't have to protect him, Luc, your job is to please him and allow him to protect you. He is asking whether or not you want to adopt the boy, and by the sounds of it you do."

Lucius nodded and took a deep breath. "You're right I do want to adopt Theodore." He turned the House Elf who had been silently following the conversation with wide eyes. "I need a quill and parchment, Elf."

With a snap of the Elf's fingers the writing instruments appeared in front of him, and Lucius composed a note to his Domine. Once the note had been sent off with Elf, he sighed and closed his eyes. Chances were he would have a new son by the end of the day.

"Don't worry about it Luc." Severus advised. "If worst comes to worst the boy will simply attempt to play the two of you off one another, and if that happens all you need to do is remember that Potter is your dominant mate."

"Right!" Rodolphus bounced in his seat and clapped his hands. "Enough about this, there are questions to be answered!"

Both Lucius and Severus groaned, and Severus took a large gulp of his firewhisky.

Rodolphus pouted. "Aw, don't be like that! It'll be fun!"

Both Lucius and Severus looked at him sceptically.

"Oh shush and be good sports." Rodolphus smirked at them. "Severus, you perform the truth spell, your magic is more powerful than mine."

Severus rolled his eyes and sighed long-sufferingly, but complied none the less.

Lucius shivered as he felt the magic flow over him.

"Ok." Rodolphus smirked impishly. "First question. How big would you say Harry's cock is when he's hard?"

Lucius blushed furiously, while Severus leaned against the back of the chair and pinched the bridge of his nose again.

"You can't ask that!" Lucius exclaimed before spouting the answer. "Seven inches long and about two inches in width." Lucius gasped and covered his mouth with his hands. He was starting to wonder whether he had misjudged his deal with Rodolphus. If that what was the first question what would the rest of them be like?

As it turned out the rest of them were equally bad, if not worse. Rodolphus seemed a perverse amount of joy from forcing Lucius to describe his and his Domine's sexual encounters in great detail. Lucius spend the majority of the time squeaking and blushing in mortification. Severus just observed the proceedings with a smirk, apparently finding Lucius' predicament amusing.

"Question six." Rodolphus announced following Lucius' detailed description of the blowjob he had given his Domine that morning. "What is the main question that you are hoping I don't ask you?"

Lucius glared at him. "That's not fair!" He protested even as he felt the spell force him to answer. "Who I gave a blowjob to when we were at school."

He groaned as he saw Rodolphus' grin grow wider and Severus lean forward interested.

"Wonderful! Thank you Luc, I have always wanted to know and would have forgotten if you hadn't reminded me." Rodolphus rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Right then, question seven. "Who did you give a blowjob to during our time at Hogwarts?"

Lucius inwardly cursed, for what felt the hundredth time, for having had the stupidity to make the deal with Rodolphus.

"Rupert Wood, Rabastan, Arthur Weasley, Fabian and Gideon Prewett, and Antonin Dolohov."

Lucius felt his blush return as both his friends raised an eyebrow at him.

"You did get around didn't you Luc." Severus teased.

"Hah! I knew you blew Weasley! It was obvious, despite how much you denied it. I'm sure Harry appreciates your experience." Rodolphus laughed. "Actually, we know he does, you just told us all about it."

Lucius conjured a cushion and threw it at his friend.

"And so we come to question eight." Rodolphus stated, having vanished the cushion. "Why did you squeak at dinner last night?"

Lucius covered his face with his hands, while it was no worse than the previous questions it had been one he had hoped Rodolphus would forget about.

"I had a vibrating plug up my arse." His mouth answered and he moaned as his friends laughed at him.

"Really?" Rodolphus asked. "Good on Harry. I wouldn't have thought he had it in him, explains why you were walking funny too. I just presumed you were a bit sore from the sex."

"I think everyone did." Severus snorted. "Imagine if they all knew that Lucius Malfoy ate dinner with them with a plug up his arse."

Lucius moaned, he was never making a deal with Rodolphus ever again. He would willingly let the entire world know that he had squeaked, muggles and all, rather than go through another question session like this one.

"I promised Severus the last two questions." Rodolphus stated as he sprawled out onto his chair. "So it's his turn now. Betcha none of his questions are nearly as interesting as my ones were."

Lucius turned to Severus thankfully, Severus was always much more tame when it came to these sorts of things.

"Alright, question nine. Did you cheat on that Ancient Runes test in sixth year?" Severus asked him.

Rodolphus sat up with a jolt. "Seriously? You have free reign to ask him any question you want and you ask him about some silly test from over twenty years ago?"

Lucius shared Rodolphus' sentiment but for a totally separate reason. Damn, Severus was supposed to be the nice one.

"Yes." He admitted glaring at his friend.

"Hah!" Severus pointed a finger a him. "I knew it! There was no way anyone could have memorised that stupid set of runes."

Lucius closed his eyes mournfully. He had been holding his higher grade from that test over Severus' face for years, Severus was never going to let him forget it now.

"I can't believe you two!" Rodolphus groaned in disgust. "It was twenty years ago people, and it was Ancient Runes for Merlin's sake and one in sixth year at that. Who cares?"

"We do!" Both Lucius and Severus told their friend.

"Nerds!" Rodolphus sighed. "Alright lets move on shall we, last question Severus."

"Alright Lucius." Severus leaned forward and looked at Lucius seriously. "How do you really feel about Potter being your mate?"

Lucius smiled, relieved. He didn't mind this question at all.

"Wonderful. He makes me feel so safe and loved. I was worried that if I found my mate I wouldn't like having to submit to another person, but it feels amazing. Every time he orders me to do something, or gives me an opportunity to serve him I feel as though I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be."

He sighed happily and smiled brightly at his friends. "I don't think I have ever been this happy in my life. Even when he is teasing me or I am having an emotional break down like earlier, I still feel absolutely content."

Lucius saw that both his friends were smiling at him.

"We are very happy for you, Luc." Rodolphus told him as Severus removed the truth spell.

"Yes," Severus nodded. "We are. I will make more an attempt to get along with Potter for you."

"Thank you! You know," Lucius grinned cheekily at his friend. "You could start by calling him Harry."

"Yes Sev," Rodolphus joined in. "If you really wanted to make an effort you could even give him leave to call you by your name."

Snape glared weakly at them. "Oh fine! But I'm only doing this for you Lucius!"

Lucius smiled widely. "Thank you Severus. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"So Luc," Rodolphus sprawled himself out in his chair again. "Have you and Harry spoken about children yet?"

Lucius shook his head. "No not yet. I presume he will want more children. He has four houses to provide heirs for, but he he hasn't mentioned it."

Severus snorted. "He probably already has two sons and he's not yet seventeen. The two of you have plenty of time to provide enough heirs for all his houses."

"Have you been using protection?" Rodolphus asked.

"Of course not!" Lucius replied vehemently. "I would never do that without asking my Domine first."

"It's rather strange to get used to your life not quite being your own anymore, Luc." Severus mused.

Rodolphus ignored him. "So you could be pregnant already then?"

Lucius felt startled. "Well I suppose I could be. But I have no idea, and it's only been a day. He could have cast a contraceptive spell and not told me."

Rodolphus looked slightly upset at that. "He wouldn't do that though, would he?"

"He would be well within his rights if he had." Lucius told his friend. "It is his decision."

Rodolphus looked put out.

"As I said," Severus told him. "The concept that Luc's life is no longer his own is going to take some getting used to."

"Yeah." Rodolphus sighed. "It is."

Lucius looked at his friends and thought how strange it was that they were finding his submissive position in his relationship harder to deal with than he was. Though his creature instincts probably helped with that.

"I'm happy though, Sev, Rodol." Lucius assured them. "Really happy, and I love the fact that I no longer have to make those decisions."

His friends didn't look entirely convinced but they cheered up slightly.

"Just talk to him about it, alright Luc?" Rodolphus asked him. "It's one of those important things people are supposed to talk about before bonding."

"Oh," Lucius looked sheepish. "We already bonded. Well our creatures did at least." He showed his friends the place his Domine had bitten his wrist. "See? It's his claim mark."

Severus stood and moved so he could see the wrist clearly. "What exactly does that mean, claim mark, Luc?"

"The mark shows that I belong to him. Any Veela, or another creature, will instantly know that I am my Domine's submissive mate when they see it. The mark also acts as an erogenous zone. All my Domine has to do is touch that part of my wrist and I am automatically aroused. Well if he wants me to be, it can also calm me down, or flood my brain with hormones that make me especially submissive. It all depends on his intention when he touches it."

"Huh." Severus returned to his seat. "I didn't know that. That's fascinating."

Rodolphus leaned forward smirking. "So you could be anywhere, in the middle of Diagon Alley for example, and all he would have to do to make you instantly hard is rub your wrist? Betcha he'll have fun teasing you with that."

Lucius remembered his Domine's promise slash threat about sex at lunch and blushed causing his friends to laugh.

"Tempus...Fuck!" Severus stood hurriedly. "It's ten to twelve, I have to go. I'm working on a potion brewing that has to have freshly crushed salt worms added at twelve exactly or three weeks of work will be ruined." He smiled at Lucius. "It has been a lovely morning Luc, and I really am happy for you and Po-Harry."

Both Rodolophus and Lucius watched, bemused, as their friend ran out of the room.

"If had a knut for every time Sev has run out on us for his potions, I'd be a lot richer than I am now." Lucius joked.

Rodolphus laughed and stood up. "I need to go too, sorry Luc. Good luck with your new son. I imagine I'll see you in the next few days, if not make sure to send me the time and date for the dinner Harry is planning."

Lucius walked his friend to the door. "Absolutely. Wouldn't dream of leaving you out." He smiled. "Thanks for today, it's been great to catch up."

"Anytime Luc!" Rodolphus smirked at him. "Question time was fun! We should definitely do that again."

Lucius glared at him. "Never, never again!"

Rodolphus only laughed before leaving.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Authors Note: This is my first attempt to write Fanfiction. I have so far written 26 chapters of this story, and over 100,000 words. Reading over the first chapters again I can promise you that the writing style gets better. I plan to update one chapter a week.

A few things before the story starts. This is mostly AU from the Order of the Phoenix. Also in this Harry Potter World Hogwarts' students start at the age of 12 instead of 11.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes. The sex scenes aren't posted here, but you can find a link to them on my profile page.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

11-11-11

Teddy Nott silently followed his new guardian down the hallways. He still hadn't really managed to get his head around this new situation. When he had woken up this morning he had simply been the Nott heir. He had lived with his Father and the only thing he had had to worry about was whether his Father would be in a violent mood or not. Now though, everything was so much more complicated.

Teddy didn't understand what had caused the Dark Lord to act now. He knew that the entire pureblood community had suspected that his Father had abused him for years now, why had the Dark Lord decided to get involved now?

It wasn't that Teddy wasn't grateful to have been rescued from his Father's abusive care, he was. He had dreamed of someone taking him away and adopting him for years, and Lord Malfoy had been one of the wizards he had most wished would save him. But now Lord Malfoy was mated to Potter of all people!

He didn't know anything about Potter except what he had seen at school, but from what he had seen this morning he wasn't sure that was a very good representation of his character. He knew that Potter was the Head of four noble houses, two of which where Dukedoms. He knew that the Dark Lord viewed him as an equal, which was really hard to get his head around – Potter had always seemed so average in class. Duke Peverell, Teddy told himself firmly. Insane though the idea of it was, Duke Peverell was his guardian now. Teddy already had enough bruises at the moment from his Father, – he didn't know whether he could handle any more for being disrespectful.

They were just exiting the entrance hall and starting down another hallway when Teddy saw Professor Snape, half walking, half running, towards them. Ahead of him Potter, Duke Peverell he corrected himself again, stopped causing Teddy to stop as well. Surprisingly Snape paused before passing them.

"Pot...Harry, Nott." Snape inclined his head towards each of them, not smiling but he wasn't scowling either.

"Professor Snape." Duke Peverell inclined his head in return. "I hope your visit with Lucius went well."

This time Snape did smile. "Yes, it was very enjoyable." His smile then became more of a grimace. "I was, however, informed by my friends that it is only appropriate that you and I are on first name bases. So call me Severus, or else I shall be in trouble."

Duke Peverell laughed. "Thank you, I will."

Snape glanced down the hallway and then back at Duke Peverell, "I really must go. I have a potion waiting. Good day."

Then with a nod to Teddy he broke into a half run again.

"Huh." Duke Peverell sounded bemused and he started walking again.

They continued in silence allowing Teddy to go back to his thoughts. So his new guardian was on first name basis with both the Dark Lord and Professor Snape. Two wizards who, as far as Teddy knew, allowed virtually no one that level of familiarity. This Potter was so incredibly different from the one he had seen at Hogwarts it was was hard to believe that they were the same person. Maybe, for now, that was the way he should approach it. He wouldn't think of Duke Peverell as Potter, he would think of him as someone he had just met. The mate of Lord Malfoy, second father to Dray, equal to the Dark Lord, and his new guardian.

A few minutes after having spoken to Professor Snape, Duke Peverell stopped again – this time to talk to a wizard Teddy only recognised from the wanted flyers.

"Good morning, Rodolphus."

Duke Peverell and Lord Lestrange smiled at one another.

"Harry." Lord Lestrange then turned to look at Teddy. "And I presume you are Theodore Nott?"

Teddy looked up from the ground startled at being spoken to directly. "Y-yes, my lord."

Lord Lestrange hummed for a moment, before turning back to Duke Peverell with a grin. "Severus and I were just telling Luc that you're only seventeen and already have two sons." His expression became more serious. "You're going to be a busy man Harry, you have Lucius and two sons to take care of as well as assisting the Dark Lord in his scheme to take over the world."

Lord Lestrange smiled again though it was softer than before. "Let Severus and I know if we can do anything to help. Harry. You're part of the family now."

Teddy wasn't entirely sure how he felt about being described as one of Duke Peverell's sons. He felt kind of numb. He watched as Duke Peverell and Lord Lestrange exchanged a few pleasantries before each heading in their own direction again.

It was only a minute later that Duke Peverell stopped in front of a door a knocked. He turned to Teddy and smiled gently. "I know this is a lot to take in Theodore, but we can discuss it all soon."

Teddy nodded, still numb. The door opened and Theodore saw Draco, dressed in navy robes, standing at the door.

"Père!" Draco grinned and threw himself forward, in a very unMalfoy like manner, and embraced Duke Peverell.

"Good morning Fiston." Duke Peverell returned the hug. "Are you ready to go into Diagon Alley?"

Draco nodded against the Duke's shoulder. "Yes. I firecalled Blaise this morning and he will meet me at Fortescue's at twelve thirty. I tried to firecall Teddy a few times too, but the elf said that he and his Father weren't home."

Stepping out the embrace Draco noticed Teddy standing there and grinned. "Oh, Teddy! What are you doing here?"

Teddy smiled weakly at his friend, but wasn't sure what to say. Luckily, Duke Peverell seemed to sense his confusion.

"How about we wait until we're in your Father and my suite before we have this conversation, alright Draco?"

Draco looked slightly confused but nodded anyway. "Sure, I'm ready." He stepped out into the hallway and shut the door behind him.

It turned out that Duke Peverell's suite was only ten steps from Draco's one, so it wasn't long before they were all standing in what looked like a parlour. As soon as they arrived, Lord Malfoy walked out of the only other door in the room.

"Good morning, Domine." Lord Malfoy's face lit up as he moved towards Duke Peverell.

"Good morning again, little one." Duke Peverell pulled Lord Malfoy in for a chaste kiss before releasing him.

"How was your morning?" The Duke asked. "Did the question session go well."

Lord Malfoy blushed and Duke Peverell laughed.

Teddy watched their interaction with fascination. He had never seen Lord Malfoy like this. Draco's father looked so happy and free; he had even blushed! Theodore had been friends with Draco long enough to know that blushing was certainly not behaviour appropriate for a Malfoy.

"Let's all sit down shall we?" Duke Peverell suggested, gently pushing Lord Malfoy towards the couch.

"I'm confused." Draco said as he moved to sit on one of the chairs opposite the the couch, Theodore sat in the chair next to Draco. "I thought we were going to Diagon Alley."

Duke Peverell sighed as he sat on the couch and Lord Malfoy curled up against his side.

"We are Fiston. There are just a few things that we need to discuss first." Duke Peverell wrapped an arm around Lord Malfoy and drew him closer. "Alright, Draco. I will tell the entire story for your benefit. Theodore and Lucius already know the majority of it."

Draco nodded, still looking confused.

Duke Peverell began to run his fingers through Lord Malfoy's hair. "As you know Draco, I had a meeting with Tom this morning."

"Tom?" Draco's forehead furrowed. "But I thought you were meeting with the Dark Lord."

Duke Peverell laughed. "Yes Draco, but he didn't actually come out of the womb called 'The Dark Lord' you know. His name is Tom. Remember? I called him that last night."

Draco thought about it. "Was that when you were teasing and mocking him? Because I was probably too busy worrying that he would murder you at the time to remember those things."

Teddy fully understood the sentiment, he had been horrified to witness the banter between the Dark Lord and Duke Peverell earlier. He had never seen anyone tortured before and he didn't want to, but people didn't call the the Dark Lord a bastard and get away with it. Well, except for Duke Peverell it seemed.

The Duke laughed again. "Right. Anyway, so I met this morning with Tom, The Dark Lord, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named etcetera etcetera. Tom informed me that Theodred Nott wasn't caring for Theodore adequately and so Theodore was to be removed from his care."

Teddy leaned against his chair and tried not to look at Draco. He knew that his friend suspected that his father had been abusive, but it was different now that it was confirmed. Duke Peverell continued.

"Tom has requested that your Father and I adopt Theodore, we have agreed."

Draco looked between his parents and Teddy. "So, that means that Teddy is my brother now?"

"Yes, exactly." Duke Peverell smiled at both Teddy and Draco. "Lucius and I will fill out the remainder of the paperwork in a minute and then I will take it to the Ministry today."

He pulled the parchment out of his robe and passed it to Lord Malfoy. "How about you start filling it out now little one."

"Yes Domine."

Teddy watched in shock as Lord Malfoy obediently sat upright, summoned a quill and ink and conjured a small table before starting to fill in the form. It was strange watching Lord Malfoy so subdued and obedient.

Duke Peverell turned back to Teddy and Draco. "Now, before this all becomes final, I want to talk to both of you and make sure this is something we are all ok with. I..."

"I think it's awesome!" Draco broke in. "I've always wanted a brother! And who better to have as a brother than one of my best friends?" He smiled at Teddy before noticing that Duke Peverell had raised an eyebrow in censure. "Oh, sorry for interrupting, Père."

Duke Peverell nodded. "I am glad you are excited Draco, but don't be rude." He turned his gaze to Teddy. "Well, now that we know that Draco is on board, I want to be sure that this is something you want Theodore. Once these papers are submitted to the ministry they are permanent.

"I know that Tom can come across intense, especially when he is trying to convince someone to do something, but this has to be your choice. I am the head of this family, and it will be a lot harder for you to adjust to this than it has been for the rest of us because you don't have any creature instincts helping. Lucius and I are both very happy to have you in our family; but you have to want to be here, and be willing to accept me as your primary authority figure, otherwise this won't work."

Teddy thought about it. He really wanted to be in Lord Malfoy and Draco's family. He had wanted that since he had been eight and realised Lord Malfoy didn't ever hit Draco. And he really didn't want to live with the Parkinsons or any of the Dark Lord's other options. Could he accept Duke Peverell as his father figure?

"Yes, your grace." Teddy looked up from his hands and nodded. "I want this."

Duke Peverell smiled delightedly. "Brilliant Theodore. I'm glad."

"Pere, if Teddy is going to be part of our family you shouldn't call him 'Theodore'." Draco told the Duke. "He hates being called Theodore."

Duke Peverell turned back to look at Teddy. "Is that right?"

"Yes, your grace." Teddy looked back at his hands.

"What would you like me to call you then?"

"Teddy please, your grace." Teddy looked up briefly and saw that the Duke was smiling at him.

"Teddy it is then." Duke Peverell turned to Lord Malfoy and looked at the form. "How are you going there little one?"

"I'm almost done, Domine, they only need our names, date of birth, and magical signature. I've filled in your part of the form as well, I just need you to tap your wand here." Lord Malfoy pointed to spot at the bottom of the parchment.

Having followed Lord Malfoy's instructions, Duke Peverell stood up and then starting walking towards, what Theodore presumed, was the bedroom door. "I just need a few minutes to freshen up for Diagon Alley, we will leave in about ten minutes."

Lord Malfoy stood up as well. "I'll go finish getting ready as well. You two boys stay here and talk." With that he followed the Duke through the door.

11-11-11

Harry sighed as he walked in the bathroom and splashed some water onto his face. What a morning, and now he had less than fifty minutes to drop the boys at Diagon Alley, drop the form off at the Ministry, find the information on the terms of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's marriage in the Ministry Archives, and be at the twin's shop for the meeting.

Looking in the mirror he saw the Lucius had followed him in.

"Hello there little one." Harry turned around and leant on the sink. "Are you sure you're alright with us adopting Teddy?"

Lucius moved forward and wrapped his arms around Harry. "Yes, Domine. I admit that when I first got your note, I panicked slightly. I was worried about the amount of pressure it would put on you. But Sev and Rodol reminded me that you can look after yourself, and personally I am thrilled about the idea of adopting Teddy."

Harry leaned forward to kiss Lucius gently. "I'm glad Lucius. And your friends were right. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself, as well as you and the boys."

Lucius tried to step out of the embrace but Harry didn't let him. "Don't you need to get ready Domine?"

"I am ready, little one." Harry told him sucking on his earlob gently. "I just needed a few minutes to relax."

Lucius mewled quietly as Harry began to kiss a line down his neck. "Shouldn't...shouldn't you be relaxing then Domine?"

Harry chuckled softly against Lucius' skin. "I am relaxing Lucius. Besides we have a busy next few hours, and I remember promising to let you come at lunch if you had been good." He moved to the other side of Lucius' neck. "Have you been good little one?"

11-11-11

Sex scene alert. If you want to read it, the link to this story on the Archive website is one my profle page.

11-11-11

Harry stood up and moved to the sink to pick up a comb and smooth down his hair. He smirked at the sight of Lucius sprawled out on the toilet looking utterly debauched.

"Alright there little one?"

Lucius raised his head and nodded, still dazed.

"Up you get, love." Harry said, putting down the comb and turning back to Lucius. "Time to go."

He helped Lucius to his feet, and spelled his robes closed again. Lucius took a deep breath before moving to the sink to wash his face and smooth down his hair.

A few minutes later both Harry and Lucius entered the living room area again. Harry handed each of the boys a coin sack.

"Here is ten galleons for each of you. You shouldn't need anymore than that today." Both boys accepted the coin sacks eagerly, though Teddy looked surprised. "You two will be flooing to Diagon Alley and Lucius and I will be paying a visit to the ministry. From one o'clock though, we will be at Weasley Wizarding Wheezes in a meeting. If you need either of us, don't hesitate to come get us."

Harry looked over at a surprised looking Lucius. "I am really sorry, love. I had planned to take you out for lunch, but there are just so many things I need to do today. Another day I promise."

Lucius nodded in acceptance, and Harry turned back to the boys.

"Don't do anything you wouldn't do if Lucius and I were with you." He commanded them. Walking towards the fireplace, Harry grabbed the bowl of Floo Power and held it out to them. After they had flooed away he held the bowl out to Lucius. "You first, little one."

After Lucius was gone, Harry grabbed a handful of Powder and placed the bowl back onto the mantelpiece before flooing to the Ministry Atrium. Lucius was waiting for him beside one of the pillars.

"Ok, Lucius. We have half an hour to hand in the adoption form, find some documents in the Ministry Archive and be at the Weasley's shop. I think I am going to need you to use your influence."

Lucius looked faintly amused. "Let's focus on the adoption form first, shall we?"

11-11-11

Lucius stumbled out of the fireplace and was saved from falling by his Domine. It had been years since he had last exited a Floo in a less than graceful manner and he knew it was caused by his apprehension. He and his Domine had decided to Floo directly into the prank shop to avoid Lucius being seen entering a store owned by Weasleys.

His Domine had briefly explained the purpose of their being here while they had been retrieving files from the Ministry Archives, and though Lucius would never say it he thought it was a terrible idea. Lucius was about to walk into a room with five Weasleys, five adult male Weasleys who had been taught since birth to hate all Malfoys. But worse than that Lucius was going to be the outsider in a family meeting where his Domine explained that the Weasley's mother had blackmailed their father. This could not go well.

He rested his head on his Domine's shoulder for a moment, before pulling on his carefully formed Malfoy lord mask again.

"Hey now." Lucius's Domine cupped his cheek with a hand. "None of that. These are my family in all but blood. I need you to get on with them, just as you needed Severus and I to get on."

Lucius sighed softly as his Domine lent forward to kiss him softly.

"Just be yourself little one. You don't have to call me Domine if you don't want to, but please don't pretend to be the arrogant, reserved Malfoy lord."

Looking into his Domine's eyes, Lucius was shocked by the amount of love he saw. He rested his forehead against his Domine's and sighed again.

"As you wish, Domine."

His Domine smiled brightly and kissed him again. "Thank you Lucius! All will be well, I promise."

"Ello Hart!"

Lucius jumped startled by the loud voice. He tried to move away but his Domine grabbed his hand. Turning Lucius saw a red headed man standing in the doorway.

"Afternoon George." Lucius's Domine smiled happily at the man. "Got any food? I'm starved. Lucius and I slept in this morning; and then I had a meeting with Tom; and then a family meeting; then I had to do some errands at the Ministry; and then we came straight here; and well, I haven't actually eaten yet today."

Lucius felt a his guilt rising again. He should have insured that his Domine was fed! He forced the feeling down and tried to smile at the man – George, his mind supplied – who was glancing at him with interest.

"Course we do Hart." The man, George, grinned at Lucius' Domine. "We're Weasley's, can you imagine a family meeting without copious amounts of food? Now, Hart, the polite thing to do in this situation is to introduce your self-professed triplet to your mate."

Lucius felt off-balance. He didn't even know what Weasley this was. Was George one of the twins? Or was he one of the older ones? Why did he keep referring to his Domine as 'Hart'? And triplet?

"Yes, right, sorry about that." Lucius felt infinity better as his mate squeezed his hand and smiled adoringly at him. "George, this is my mate – Lucius Malfoy, Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. Lucius, meet George Weasley – one of the infamous Weasley twins."

Inclining his head towards the other man, Lucius tried to hide his nerves at meeting one of his Domine's friends. It would have all been so much easier if he had been allowed to put on his mask.

"Good Afternoon Mr. Weasley. It is a pleasure to meet you."

George smiled at him and bowed respectfully. Lucius almost raised his eyebrows in surprise, he hadn't expected to be shown respect for his title here. Maybe he didn't know that he was his pseudo brothers 'submissive' mate. And it wasn't as though the Weasley children had been known for their manners.

"Welcome to our shop, Lord Malfoy. And call me George. After all you're mated to my brother, that makes you family." George grinned at him. "Besides, when we get upstairs you are going to be surrounded by 'Mr. Weasleys'."

Lucius found the Weasley's grin infectious and smiled shyly back. Part of him wished for his mask, he hadn't acted this bashful around anyone outside of family since he was in his twenties.

"Thank you George. Please call me Lucius then."

The red haired man grinned and winked at him, and Lucius cursed himself for the blush that he could feel spreading over his face. His Domine squeezed his hand and pulled Lucius against his side.

"Wonderful!" His Domine exclaimed, smiling widely. "Now food, George. I need food!"

"Right you are Hart! To the apartment then." George performed a dramatic bow and indicated towards the door. "After you gentlemen."

Lucius reluctantly allowed his Domine to lead him out onto the shop floor and then up some stairs. One exuberant Weasley had been enough for him to handle, he wasn't looking forward to four more introductions.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story would have have been possible.

Thanks for reading

12-12-12

When Lucius followed his Domine into the Weasley twins' apartment and saw the four red haired men scattered around the room, he almost turned around and fled. He had known that there would be four Weasley's in the room, five if he included the one who he had already met, but it was still terrifying!

If the men had been talking before, they had stopped when their brother had swung open the door with an enthusiastic shout.

"They're here!"

As none of the men had said anything, instead choosing to stare at the newcomers, Lucius took a moment to take them in. The most familiar of the men, the one with curly hair, was in a business suit and was sitting primly in an armchair with a newspaper on his lap. The man in the chair next him was incredibly tanned - which Lucius hadn't even know was possible for people with hair as red as the Weasley's - and large and brawny. He had on a singlet, which gave Lucius a clear view of a tattoo of a dragon on his shoulder, and sat sprawled in a chair with one foot on the coffee table.

The last two men sat together on one of the couches. One of then was obviously the second twin, the other looked older than the rest and had long hair pulled back into a ponytail. The older one was sexy in a bad boy kind of way. He had on tight jeans, and a shirt with a waistcoat and had a fang hanging from his ear. All in all, the brothers were very intimidating.

Lucius felt his Domine's thumb rubbing over the claiming mark and instantly felt calmer. He followed his Domine to the empty couch and then sat next to him. Lucius was in the middle of inwardly debating the pros and cons of snuggling up to his Domine on the couch – pros involving the safe and comforting feeling he would gain, and cons being the fact that Malfoy's never ever snuggled in public – when it seemed as though all the room's occupants started talking at once.

"Harry! How are you?"

"It's good to see you Harry! I haven't seen you in a year."

"Bloody hell Harry! You look great! I swear every time I see you there's something different."

"Oh thank Merlin you've arrived! We can eat now! Bill said we had to wait until you got here but I'm bloody hungry."

"You're almost as bad as Ron, Charlie. I don't even want to know where you manage to stack all the food you eat."

"Don't exaggerate Percy! I don't eat nearly as much as Ron. Besides I'm a working man, I've been up since five this morning and haven't eaten since breakfast. We have a Nesting Opal-Eye at the moment. Bloody hard work."

"Where's is the food Bill? I thought it was on the counter when I left to find Harry."

"Yeah it was but then Charlie kept whinging about eating so we put it in the kitchen, out of sight out of mind and all that."

"I wasn't whinging! You take that back!"

Feeling overwhelmed Lucius leaned closer to his Domine and was relieved to feel an arm slip around him, pulling him against his Domine's side. Lucius leant his head against his Domine's shoulder.

"Everyone quiet!" The sexy one commanded and surprisingly they all obeyed.

A few seconds later, George, the only Weasley Lucius knew the name of, burst back into the room, levitating a pile of what Lucius thought were muggle pizza boxes, and the chaos instantly resumed.

"I bring food!"

"'Bout time! Hey, pass me a box!"

"Oo I want some Pepperoni!"

"Did you bring plates too? Or at least napkins?"

"What do you think I am? Your waitress? Conjure one you lazy arse!"

It took some time before everyone had pizza on their plate and the pandemonium had died down.

Lucius' Domine cleared his throat drawing everyone's attention. "I think some introductions are in order." He smiled down at Lucius before turning back to the room. "This is Lucius Malfoy, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. I recognised him as my mate a few weeks ago, and we have since bonded.

"Right, that's the easy introduction, now to introduce you lot. Ok, Lucius you met George down stairs, well the one that looks exactly like him is Fred."

"Don't feel bad if you can't tell them apart," The brawny brother put in. "Harry's the only one we know who actually can, none of the rest of us have figured it out and he won't share his secret with us."

"The one who just talked was Charlie, he's the second oldest and works as a dragon handler on the Romanian Dragon Reserve. Next to him is Percy, he's the middle brother here and works at the Ministry." The curly haired man gave a sort of half bow in his seat. "Lastly we have Bill. He's the eldest Weasley and works at Gringotts as a curse breaker."

Lucius nodded and smiled as each brother was introduced, trying to memorise each name. After the introductions the room fell quiet as everyone concentrated on eating. After a few minutes the oldest brother – Bill - leaned forward seriously.

"Alright. What did you call us here for Harry? George said that you sounded really serious."

Lucius felt his Domine stiffen slightly beside him, before relaxing again and sighing.

"Yeah, it is really serious. Firstly, how long do you guys have? I know it was really late notice, and you all were at work today."

The brawny one - was that one Percy? - put his second leg on the table. "I took some time off, I'm not back at the Reserve until Sunday. I thought it was as good a time as any to spend some time with family."

The curly haired -Lucius realised that this one was Percy, the other must must have been Charlie – nodded. "Likewise. I took the afternoon of work. Fudge grumbled a bit, not that I told him I was leaving for a family meeting. He still has something against the lot of you." Percy paused, looking over at Harry and then at each of his brothers. "Thank you, by the way, for helping me get this job. I really appreciate it."

Lucius looked up at his Domine, confused. How had these men assisted Percy in gaining a job at the ministry? What could his Domine, a curse breaker, joke shop holder and dragon handler possibly have done to help someone gain employment at the ministry?

Noticing his look, Lucius' Domine quietly explained. "Perce had to publicly renounce both me and the Weasley family to get the job. There is no way the ministry would have employed him they thought he support Harry Potter. We all told him that it was fine, and together we put on a show of fighting with him. It's a plus for everyone involved. Fudge feels good because he feels as though he managed to steal one of Dumbledore's supporters, Perce gets the job he wants, and I get a spy in the Minister's staff."

Lucius leaned against his Domine's shoulder, how had his Domine managed to hide how sneaky and resourceful he was? Lucius had been trying to get a man on Fudge's personal staff for years, and his Domine had managed it at sixteen. Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Lucius realised that one of the twins were talking.

"...Verity that we were..."

"Taking the afternoon off..."

"So that just leaves Bill..."

"How long have you got Billy goat?"

No one, other than Lucius, seemed to find the joint talking confusing, so Lucius presumed that they did it regularly.

"Yeah I have the afternoon off too, because when has one of our meetings ever managed to fit within an hour or even two?"

The brothers laughed and Bill turned towards Lucius' Domine.

"Funny thing though Harry, when Grusak, my supervisor, asked for my reason for wanting the afternoon off and I told them that you had an emergency family meeting he actually smiled and gave me the day off, no more questions asked. I have never seen a goblin that amiable before, normally it's like pulling teeth to get time off. What did you do to make them like you so much?"

Lucius' Domine laughed. "Really? You're kidding? I was at Gringotts yesterday to withdraw some galleons, it was actually terrifying because I tried out my gobbledegook and they stared at me in shock and then growled at me to follow them. I thought I had gotten my words mixed up and was about to be beheaded for insulting them.

"But anyway, they told me that due to Sirius' will I am now the Head of the House of Black, and then told me that I'm also the Duke of Peverell and Gryffindor. They also helped me come into my creature inheritance early. I guess I'm their most valued customer or something."

All the brother's looked stunned, except for the twins who Lucius guessed has already heard the story.

"Seriously Harry? So with the Potter Lordship that gives you four noble titles? You never do things by half do you?"

"That's incredible Harry! I'm sure it'll definitely be helpful when you decide to start introducing laws to the Wizengamot. That's twelve votes more than you thought you had."

"You speak gobbledegook?"

"Really Charlie?" One of the twins was looking disbelievingly at their brawny brother. "Hart tells you that he's a both a Duke and a Lord twice over and all you can comment on is his linguistic skills?"

"What? We already knew Harry was of noble blood and horribly rich, what difference does three more titles really make?"

"Wait." Percy was looking from Lucius to his Domine. "You'll have sixteen votes won't you? Because technically the Malfoy Lordship is now yours as well."

Charlie leant over to hit his brother on the head, causing Percy to squeak indignantly.

"That's rude, Perce. Harry introduced Lord Malfoy as the head of the House of Malfoy so obviously that's not the case with them." He turned towards Lucius. "I apologise for my brother Lord Malfoy, one would have thought he would have learnt manners working in politics but apparently not." He glared at his brother.

Lucius wasn't sure what the fuss was about. Of course his Domine had control over the House of Malfoy, perhaps this was one of those times when his creature made him see things differently.

"No need to apologise, Mr. Weasley. Your brother was right."

"Alright!" His Domine called and the room went silent. "Firstly, before I explain why we are all here, I would like to point out that we are all family here, and Lucius cannot go around calling you all 'Mr. Weasley because that would be horribly confusing. So, Lucius, will call you all by your first names, and you can all call him Lucius. Ok?"

Amazingly everyone just nodded and waited for Harry to continue.

"Now as to why I asked you all to come." Lucius's Domine sighed and lent forward putting his hands on his knees and Lucius found that he missed the comfort of having an arm around him. "Lucius and I were talking yesterday and he told me of a story he had heard about your family. It's really bad, and at first I didn't want to believe it, so I asked Rodolphus Lestrange because apparently he knows all the gossip among purebloods and he confirmed it."

Lucius looked at the Weasley brothers who were all looking apprehensive, but seemed to be willing just to let his Domine talk.

"Now I know that you don't have any reason to trust Lucius and Rodolphus, but I do and I know you trust me so I'm asking you to believe me when I say that this is true. I went to the Ministry Archives before I came here because I wanted to see if I could find proof, and I did."

Lucius's Domine leaned back and put his face in his hands for a moment.

"This is really hard. Fred, George do you have any liquor? I could really use some. In fact I think we all could."

One of the twins nodded and went to get some.

"It can't be that bad can it Hart?" The other twin asked. All the brothers were looking worriedly at his Domine. "We trust you. I'll believe you no matter what you tell us, especially if you have proof."

The other men all nodded in agreement.

"George is right, we do trust you Harry. There is nothing you could tell us that would cause us to stop trusting you." Bill smiled reassuringly.

"Oi I'm Fred!" The twin complained, everyone laughed.

"Sure you are. I know this trick!"

"No seriously I'm Fred." Grinned the twin. "Hart! Tell my blind brother that I really am Fred."

The other twin came back into the room levitating glasses and holding a bottle of firewhisky.

"Hey George, wanna help me pour these out?" He asked with a cheeky smile.

Lucius joined in as the entire room burst into laughter.

When everyone was holding a drink the room fell quiet again as every turned back to Lucius' Domine. Lucius tentatively took one of his Domine's hands in his and squeezed reassuringly.

"Maybe I could start by telling how I heard the story Domine?" He whispered quietly.

At his Domine's relieved nod, Lucius looked at the Weasley men timidly.

"I think that the story Domine is going to tell you is probably one of the best kept pureblood secrets as I didn't know about it until last week." He started, blushing slightly as everyone focussed their attention at him. "I was talking to the Dark Lord the day after the Department of Mysteries fiasco and explaining to him that I had recognised Domine as my mate.

"Tom likes to tell stories and he started talking about how he remembered how my father had found his mate. I had never heard much about how my parents came to know each other and so I was fascinated. I was especially interested when Tom mentioned that my mother was a Weasley, your great Aunt I think. I asked him to tell me more as I have never been told anything of my mother's family."

The Weasley's were looking as shocked by their relation to him as Draco had when he found his relation to Weasleys.

"Once Tom gets going it can be hard to stop him, not of course that anyone ever tries, and he told me all about your family past and present – including the reason my Domine has asked you all here."

Lucius looked up to see if his Domine wanted him to continue.

"Thank you Lucius." His Domine stroked his cheek lightly before turning back to the room and continuing. "Firstly did you know that the Weasley House is an Ancient and Noble one?"

"What?" All the Weasley's leaned forward in shock.

"Seriously?"

"How?"

"Are you sure? Because.."

Lucius' Domine pulled the pieces of parchment they had retrieved from the Archives out of his robes and passed two of them to Bill. Lucius guessed they were the Official parchment declaring the House of Weasley a noble house and the one that had an inventory of the House's worth.

"Where did you get this?" Bill scanned the papers, with both twins peering over his shoulders, before passing it around the room.

"The Ministry Archives. It's amazing down there. They have a copy of every magical contract written in Britain in the last thousand years."

"So Dads a Lord?" The twins were looking confused.

"And rich?"

"But that..."

"Doesn't make sense?"

"Why the..."

"Second hand stuff?"

"And the Burrow is..."

"Almost falling down."

"Why would he..."

"Not use the money?"

Lucius watched fascinated as Bill swapped seats with one of the twins so the two twins could hold onto each other. He had read about Idem Gemini twins and how when they were feeling particularly emotional, their joint talking became worse and they felt a strong need to be connected to one another - and their grounder if they were bonded.

"Ok." Charlie was the last person to read the parchment. "So our family is noble and apparently has a shit load of money, but that hardly seems like the bad news we were expecting."

Lucius' Domine nodded and passed another piece of parchment to Bill. The room silently watched as Bill read the parchment. It had been Lucius' idea to try and find that piece of evidence, and he was so glad they had found it. It made the entire process a lot easier on his Domine.

"Fuck!" Bill looked furiously at Lucius' Domine. "Is this real?"

When all he received was a nod, Bill swore again. "Fuck Fuck Fuck!"

"What Bill?" Charlie had unsprawled entirely and was now sitting on the edge of his seat looking worriedly at his brother. "Tell us what it says!"

Bill leaned forward and began to read.

"_I, Arthur Septimus Weasley, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley, do so swear that I will not accept the position of Head to the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley, nor will I claim any of the belongings of the Ancient and Noble house of Weasley, for as long as I am unwillingly bonded to one Molly Ginevra Prewett."_

As Bill paused in his reading, the entire room stared at him in horror.

"_I, Septimus William Weasley, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley, do so declare that Molly Ginevra Prewett shall never be Lady of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley. I also declare that my son and heir, Arthur Septimus Weasley, shall never become Lord our the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley so long as he is unwillingly bonded to Molly Ginevra Prewett."_

The room was silent as Bill finished reading.

"What the hell?" It was Percy who was the first the react.

"Unwillingly bonded?" Charlie's fingers hand gone white from their tight grip on his glass.

"We..."

"Don't..."

"Understand."

"What..."

Does..."

"It..."

"Means?" The twins looked the worst out of all the brothers and Lucius wondered whether that was because they had yet to find a grounder.

"Harry?" Bill pulled his twin brothers towards him so he could wrap an arm around them. "I think you should probably tell us the story as you heard it."

Lucius' Domine sat up straighter and pulled Lucius closer so he was he held tightly to his side.

"Lucius, and then Rodolphus, told me that your Dad hadn't wanted to bond with your mother. But that your mother and her parents blackmailed him into the bond. Apparently the Prewett family are well known as to being a dishonourable gold digging family. Your Grandfather and your Dad came up with a way to protect the House of Weasley, and so they drew up that document to ensure that, while your Dad was trapped into a marriage with your mother, their House wouldn't be ruined because of it."

"And does anyone know what the blackmail was?" Percy was absently ripping his newspaper into pieces.

"Not for sure no. But the theory is that your Dad was covering for your Uncle Casper. Apparently Casper Weasley was a bad sort and regularly got into trouble."

Everyone jumped when Charlie's glass broke in his hand. "Fuck!"

"I..." Bill looked back down at the parchment in his hand. "I...I just don't know how to deal with this. I mean it's Mum and Dad, you know? I've always known the Mum bosses Dad around a lot, and that Dad always seemed kind of sad, but I guess I just thought that was how they were."

Bill looked at the twins who had started shivering and clinging to one another. "Fuck, I haven't seen them this bad in years." He tried to pull them into his lap but they were too big for him. "Charlie can you give me a hand here?"

Charlie finished spelling away the glass and moved to sit next to Bill so they each had a twin on their lap. "Man they really need to find a grounder and soon. It's not safe to them to be unbonded at their age."

Percy nodded, seeming to be glad of the distraction. "Yeah they really do. Have they considered any one? Does any one know?"

"That's not how it works Perce, you know they have to be courted." Bill rubbed his twin on the back soothingly.

"Fine, do they have anyone courting them?"

"Yeah." Lucius' Domine smiled briefly. "Well they haven't actually accepted yet, but they have someone interested. I give them until Tuesday before they accept, and the end of the Summer before they bond."

"Really?" Charlie laughed. "That's a mighty quick courtship, not that I'm surprised. So tell us, who is it?"

"Neville Longbottom. And before you say it, he isn't what he appears. He's been wearing a mask at Hogwarts just like I have, for almost as long as I have. I have no doubt that he is their perfect grounder."

"Longbottom? Huh, didn't know he had it in him." Percy looked shocked by the news. "I'll trust your judgement of him though."

"You can meet the real Neville on Monday. I'm having a friendly duelling tournament and dinner for some of my friends to meet some of Tom's younger followers, and you are all invited. Well you're invited to dinner, and to observe the people younger than you duel."

"Huh, sounds interesting. Who will be there?" Bill asked.

"Well me, Lucius, Draco, Teddy Nott, Blaise Zabini, Rodolphus, Snape, Neville, and Fred and George so far." Lucius' Domine paused. "Admittedly half those people don't even know about it yet, but they will be there."

The Weasley brothers laughed.

"Sounds like fun Harry, but I'll be back in Romania. Sorry."

"Yeah, I thought you probably would be. Next time you're in England you will have to come have tea with Lucius and my family though."

"Absolutely, wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Bill, Percy? Will you come?"

"Sure, though I will only be able to come for dinner." Percy said with a laugh. "Somehow I don't think asking Fudge for an afternoon off to meet baby Death Eaters would go over so well."

"Yea probably not Perce. I'll come to the dinner as well Harry, I might even come see the duelling. If I mention your name the goblins will probably give me the entire day off."

Lucius' Domine laughed. "I doubt they like me that much, Bill. How are Fred and George going?"

"We're feeling..."

"A little better..."

"Thank you..."

Everyone smiled, relieved to hear their voices sounding perky again.

"I'm glad. I have one more piece of parchment for you. It's your parents bonding contract. It's really normal. But I thought you would want it, so you are fully aware of your options."

Lucius' Domine passed the parchment to Bill. "Let me know if there is any thing I can do."

"Thanks Harry!" Bill smiled weakly at him. "We really appreciate this."

"No problem, you guys are family. Oh, and speaking of family, you'll never guess what happened to Lucius and I today."

"You got Lucius pregnant? You must have been busy, George said you only bonded yesterday." Charlie grinned and ducked the slap his older brother aimed for his head. Lucius blushed.

"Nope. Lucius and I have, at Tom's request, adopted Teddy Nott."

All five Weasley's burst out laughing and Fred and George even turned in their brothers laps to look at their pseudo brother.

"Oh Merlin really? Only you Harry!" Charlie was laughing so hard that the twin in his lap was being shaken around.

"Imagine that, Fred."

"I know, George."

"We've become Uncles twice into two days!" The twins chorused together happily and then failed to duck the head slaps their brothers aimed at them.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes, but they are only posted on AO3. The link to this story at the website is on my profile page.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

13-13-13

Draco was sitting around the newly transfigured table in his Father and Père's suite. His Père had decided that as their family was newly formed, they would have dinner together, and Draco had to admit that it was nice. At first Draco had felt apprehensive, remembering when his Father was married to his Mother and family dinners had been a awkward and cold affair, but it was different with his Père who ensured that there was always conversation and that everyone was included.

Teddy was looking utterly baffled at the entire affair, but then Teddy probably had even less experience with enjoyable family dinners than Draco. It was awesome to think that Teddy was his brother now. At first he had been a little worried that his Veela would be upset at an outsider joining the family, but it seemed that his Veela already viewed Teddy as a brother.

They had had an enjoyable afternoon with Blaise in Diagon Alley. Most of the time had been spent eating ice-creams and talking about new things in their lives, a conversation that Draco and Teddy had dominated. Blaise had been bemused to hear that both his friends had been adopted by 'Harry Potter' of all people. They had also spent some time planning a birthday party for Blaise, whose birthday was in a week. Blaise would be becoming Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini on his birthday so it was a big deal.

After they had talked, Draco had wandered around the shops while Blaise and Teddy spent some time making out in a corner of the Alley. Draco was used to covering for his friends who had been secretly dating for a year now. Blaise had wanted to court Teddy properly, but Teddy's father had forbidden it out of spite.

Draco sat up suddenly. Père was Teddy's guardian now! Which meant that Blaise and Teddy could ask his Père for permission, and they wouldn't have to hide their relationship anymore. That was awesome.

"Draco?" His Father's voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Yes Father."

"I asked you whether you were finished."

Looking up Draco realised that everyone else had finished and an Elf was waiting to take his plate.

"Sorry Father. Yes I am finished."

Draco grinned as his plate was taken and a bowl of cheesecake appeared in its place.

"Draco, Teddy, I think that we need to have talk about what Lucius and I expect of you, the rules if you will." Draco's Père started.

Draco could see Teddy stiffen and quickly look down at his bowl.

"We are aware that you are seventeen and sixteen respectively so there aren't many rules, but we expect them to be obeyed. Do you understand?"

Draco nodded as Teddy murmured, "Yes, your grace."

"Good. Alright, there are five rules. Firstly, you will treat both Lucius and I respectfully. Secondly, if you go anywhere we want to know where you are. Thirdly, you are to treat others with respect. You are both pureblood wizards, and are members of one of the most powerful noble families and we expect you to act like it. Rule number four, you may not date or court anyone without permission from me. Lastly, Lucius and I expect you boys to do your best in school. Both Lucius and I are available to help with the homework, and I will probably end up having much the same homework as you so we can do it together."

Draco's Père looked at them both seriously. "These rules are to be obeyed without exception and Lucius and I will be very disappointed if we find that you have broken one of them. Do you understand?"

"Yes Père."

"Yes, your grace."

Draco could see Teddy looking surprised, probably by small number of rules, and smiled reassuring at him. This was brilliant, now Blaise could ask Père for permission to court Teddy and they could be happy together. Having Père and Teddy in the family was awesome!

13-13-13

"Come on Teddy, it's the rule!"

"No!"

Teddy glared across the table at Draco. Ever since the rules had been explained on Friday, Draco had been pestering him to tell Duke Peverell about his relationship with Blaise. It was now Monday, and Draco just wouldn't drop it. Blaise was coming to the Manor in a few hours for the duelling and dinner event that the Duke had arranged, and Draco had decided that Teddy should admit to his relationship before then.

Draco just didn't understand guardians like Teddy did. When Blaise had asked Teddy's Father for permission to court Teddy, his Father had been furious. Teddy couldn't remember ever having as severe a beating as he had that night, and he didn't want to go through that again. His Father had been right. Teddy, being a Nott, had no right to be courted by the future Zabini Duke. If Teddy admitted to Duke Peverell that he was dating Blaise, all he would get out of it were a firm lesson in how a worthless boy like him had no business putting his sights that high, and maybe a few bruises to reinforce the lesson.

Everything was wonderful at the moment. He had two years to enjoy Blaise's affection for him before they left Hogwarts and Blaise realised that Teddy wasn't marriage material for someone of his status. He now had a new family which, while it was strange to view one of his schoolmates as his guardian, didn't hit or curse him for talking and encouraged him to join in their family events. He didn't want to spoil any of it, and telling Duke Peverell about Blaise would definitely spoil it.

"Got your books boys?"

Teddy stood up quickly as Duke Peverell entered the room. It had been easier than he thought it would to consider Duke Peverell as both his guardian and a Duke instead of a schoolmate. There was still a part of his brain that told him he was crazy to be standing whenever the Duke entered a room and treating him as if he was his Father, but Teddy was enjoying the lack of new bruises and he wasn't going to screw it up!

"Yes Père." Draco's voice reminded Teddy that Duke Peverell had asked a question.

"Yes, your grace."

"Brilliant." Duke Peverell loudly dropped his own books on the table and sprawled into a chair next to Teddy. "Sit down Teddy. I keep telling you that it isn't necessary to jump to your feet whenever I come in, you're family. Family doesn't have to follow all those social rules with one another."

Teddy sat obediently and looked down. "Yes, your grace."

"And remember that you don't have to keep calling me 'your grace'. You can just call me sir or something."

Teddy nodded meekly as he had every other time he had heard the Duke tell him that. He still wouldn't risk it though, not until he was specifically ordered to call Duke Peverell something different.

Duke Peverell rolled his eyes and opened one of his books. "Right. You wanted to do Ancient Runes today didn't you?"

Draco looked up from his book puzzled. "You don't take Ancient Runes Père."

"Well not officially, no. But there are more ways to learn than just in the classroom you know Petit-fils." Duke Peverell chuckled. "Normally with Ancient Runes, I steal Hermione's notes. That way I can make sure I'm learning the important things, though I'm normally ahead of her notes.

"Besides I took the Ancient Runes O.W.L. and I plan to take the class this coming year, so I should do the homework. Which is..." The Duke paused and flipped to the end of the book which was filled with small feminine writing. "With the help of your Rune Dictionary translate parchment A from English to Elder Futhark Runes, and translate parchment B from Elder Futhark Runes to English. Then, write a three foot essay on the difference between Elder Futhark Runes and Elder Futhorc Runes when working with wards."

Draco groaned and Teddy would have joined him if he hadn't been worrying about upsetting the Duke.

"Are you kidding me? We have barely even started learning about Futhorc Runes. And how are we supposed to translate those parchments? They're almost a foot long each."

"What?" Duke Peverell looked confused. "But I though you guys were supposed to have memorised the Futhark Rune alphabet by the end of fifth year? That's what Hermione's course outline said."

"Well, yeah, we're supposed to. But it's impossible! Not even Granger had managed to by the end of the year. Most of us had only managed to memorise half of it, if that." Draco was still looking at the parchments he was supposed to translate with horror. "Besides it's not like you had to know the whole alphabet in the exam."

Duke Peverell looked confused. "What? I used almost every Rune in the Futhark alphabet for my exam. I mean the first part was easy, it only asked you about a few runes and their uses and history. But I definitely needed it for the other parts."

"Easy?" Draco was close to screeching now. "That part wasn't easy! It was a horrible! And what do you mean other parts? There was only that first part, Père, no translating needed."

"Oh," Duke Peverell looked incredibly confused now. "Did we not take the same exam?"

"What were the other parts?" Teddy inquired quietly as Draco seem too worked up to ask.

"You know the bit where we had to translate a page of Futhark into English and then another page for English to Futhark. I couldn't have done it if I didn't have the Futhark alphabet memorised."

"You memorised the Futhark alphabet?" Draco was at screeching levels now and Teddy winced. "How? When? All of it?"

"I studied Petit-fils. Really, really hard and for hours on end." Duke Peverell was looking smug.

"But..." Draco looked flabbergasted. "But that's not possible. Professor Babbling told us that it was in the course outline purely because of tradition and as a kind of joke. She said that she had only memorised in while doing her Mastery."

The Duke was looking more embarrassed than smug now. "Really? Hermione didn't put that in her notes. So that wasn't in your exam? What about the part where they asked you to create a set of wards using only runes. That part was really hard, I barely managed it in the time limit and I'm pretty sure my wards were incredibly weak."

Both Teddy and Draco stared at him flabbergasted.

"Alright, what about the bit where you had to translate something from English to Futhorc, then Futhorc to English, and then Futhorc to Futhark. That last one was particularly hard, I had never practised that. Futhroc and Futhark runes don't quite translate properly, so you have to use English as a middle ground – but that sometimes weakens the translation."

Duke Peverell seemed to notice Teddy and Draco's dumbstruck expressions and he looked sheepish.

"I'm guessing that people aren't supposed to have memorised the Futhorc alphabet either?"

"What?" Draco was turning red. "But...but...no! Professor Babbling doesn't even have that one fully memorised! And she has her Mastery! We've barely even covered it! But...no!"

"What's going on?" Lord Malfoy hurried into the room. "Draconis what are you screeching about? You better not be yelling at your Père."

Draco just pointed at Duke Peverell dazedly. "But Father, he, he has memorised both the Futhark and Futhorc alphabet. It's impossible! My Professor hasn't even done that. I don't even think we took the same exam."

Lord Malfoy looked a little shocked, but continued scolding his son. "As amazing as that is Draco, Malfoy's do not screech – even among family! And they certainly do not screech at one of their parents."

Draco looked nodded meekly and turned back towards the smirking Duke. "Sorry Père. It's just that you're amazing! I mean I know you told us how much you studied, but wow! I don't understand the exam thing though, there was absolutely no Futhorc in my exam, no translating or wards either."

"Right." Lord Malfoy nodded briskly. "Well I am going to go back to my paperwork now. You boys behave and get some work done. The others will be here in two hours for the duelling tournament."

"Boys?" Duke Peverell got a wicked smirk on his face and Draco groaned.

"Not again!"

Duke Peverell stood up and moved towards Lord Malfoy. "Are you calling me a boy, little one?" He pulled Lord Malfoy against him.

Draco groaned again and silently Teddy agreed. Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy never seemed to stop touching and flirting with other. Lord Malfoy had explained that a lot of it was their creatures getting used to their bonding. Apparently Duke Peverell needed to continue showing Lord Malfoy that he was in charge, and Lord Malfoy needed him to do it. But the constant flirting was weird, especially for Draco whose parents were doing the flirting.

"You wouldn't call your dominant mate a boy would you? That could be construed as disrespectful little one. And you wouldn't want to be disrespectful, would you love?"

Lord Malfoy was shaking his head rapidly. "No Domine. I would never be so rude was to call you a boy."

"Are you sure little one? Because from where I was sitting it sounded like you did." Duke Peverell moved so he was nuzzling Lord Malfoy's neck.

"No Domine." Lord Malfoy's voice was shaking slightly, and Teddy didn't want to think about why it was shaking. Parent sex was weird, even if one of the parents was actually his age.

"I'm glad little one." The Duke backed off so he was only holding Lord Malfoy's hand stroking his wrist. Strangely that seemed to affect Lord Malfoy more than the neck nuzzling had.

"Go do your paperwork, little one." Duke Peverell seemed to purr. "We wouldn't want you to get behind, besides we 'boys' need to get some homework done."

With one more stroke to the wrist, Duke Peverell let go and moved to sit down again. Lord Malfoy stood still for a moment, then he jumped slightly and blushed bright red. He turned and rushed back into the bedroom, where he was doing paperwork, with a meek. "Yes Domine."

Duke Peverell was still smirking as he watched Lord Malfoy flee back to the bedroom, then he looked back to the homework.

"So would you guys like to learn the Futhark alphabet this summer? I created some create learning tools if you want to use them."

13-13-13

Lucius groaned as he realised that he had barely gotten any paperwork done in seventy minutes. He was just so horny. His Domine hadn't let him come since the morning before, which wouldn't have been so bad five days ago when he was unmated, but now he had vibrating plug in his arse which went off at random times and a Domine who teased him relentlessly.

"How's the paperwork coming Lucius?"

Lucius glared in his Domine's direction. "Horribly Domine. I can't concentrate!"

"Is that a glare little one?" His Domine smirked as he pulled off the jersey he had been wearing. "I came in here to see if you wanted to come before it was time to go down to the duelling tournament, and you're glaring at me. Maybe you don't want to come."

Lucius bent his head submissively. "Please Domine! I really want to come. Please."

His Domine laughed softly as he pulled his shirt off leaving his upper half bare. "Really, little one? Because I would have thought that if you really wanted to come you wouldn't have done something as disrespectful as glaring at me."

Lucius almost whimpered in arousal. It was an amazing feeling having a dominant mate! Everything felt so wonderful, even things like going more than day hard and aching made him feel better than he ever had before, because he knew he was pleasing his Domine.

"Please Domine."

His Domine tilted his head to the side and seemed to think. "Alright then. Strip little one."

13-13-13

There would be sex here, but you'll have to go to AO3 to find it. The link is on my profile page.

13-13-13

They both fell, panting, onto the bed so that Lucius was spooned against his Domine.

"You really are extraordinary little one." His Domine said as he held Lucius.

"Thank you Domine." Lucius smiled. "You're not so bad yourself."

His Domine sat up laughing. "Shower time now love. Our guests are arriving in twenty minutes, so we have about ten minutes to be ready."

It was a rush, but both Lucius and his Domine managed to make themselves presentable in the time they had. When they moved into the lounge they saw that both Teddy and Draco were sitting waiting for them. The minute Teddy saw them though he shot to him feet and bent his head respectfully and Lucius sighed. Both he and his Domine had tried to persuade Teddy that he was family and didn't need to do that, but Teddy hadn't been convinced.

"Finally!" Draco stood up as well. "We're going to be late."

Lucius's Domine laughed. "No we're not. We have ten minutes until people will start arriving and it only takes five minutes to walk to the entrance hall."

Draco huffed slightly. "Well, we will be late if we don't leave now."

This time Lucius laughed along with his Domine.

"Just before we leave Draco, what the rules for tonight?"

Draco sighed and rolled his eyes but his voice was respectful. "Remember that Gryffindors wear masks at Hogwarts too, be nice to everyone -even Gryffindors, try and make friends with the Gryffindors and be respectful to everyone- even Gryffindors."

Lucius's Domine grinned and moved to the door. "Wonderful, now we can go."

13-13-13

Thank you all for reading. There are almost 300 reviews to this story. Wow! Thank you! As usual when it gets to the 300 mark I will upload an extra chapter for the week.

Also – not so much plot here I know, but this is as much as family/romance story as it is an 'independent!harry' one. I hope you enjoyed it anyway.

..


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes, but they are only posted on AO3. The link to this story at the website is on my profile page.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

14-14-14

Harry grinned quickly before schooling his face into a proper pureblood expression. He and his family were waiting in the entrance hall for their guests to arrive; and Harry was sure that, if it had been appropriate behaviour, Draco would have been bouncing with excitement. As much as Draco had complained about being forced to spend time with Gryffindors, Harry knew that his son was looking forward to meeting them properly.

The floo flared and Zabini stepped out. Harry was interested to note the joyful smile that fleetingly crossed Teddy's face. Zabini approached them and bowed deeply. Harry and Lucius both inclined their heads politely.

"Blaise, it is a pleasure to see you again." Lucius greeted him. "I am unsure whether you have been introduced formally to my mate." Lucius turned slightly so he could touch Harry's arm with his hand. "This is Duke Peverell. Head of the Houses of Potter, Black, Gryffindor and Peverell, de facto Head of the House of Malfoy."

Harry could see Zabini look faintly surprised, before recovered and bowing again. Hadn't Draco and Teddy told their friend of his many titles?

"It is a pleasure to meet you, your grace." Blaise said as he came out of his bow.

"Likewise Mr. Zabini." Harry inclined his head again. "I have heard much about you from my sons. They speak very highly of you."

Zabini smiled. "I greatly enjoy their friendship. Please call me Blaise, your grace. It would be less than ideal to be on such formal terms with my two closest friends' father."

Harry allowed his pureblood mask to soften slightly. "Thank you Blaise. I was told that you will become the Head of the House of Zabini on Saturday. The Dark Lord and I would like to speak to you sometime this week about how you would be able to assist us."

"It would be an honour, your grace."

"Wonderful." This time Harry allowed himself to smile slightly. "We will owl you with the details. Draco, Teddy? Would you like to show your friend to the duelling hall? Your Father and I will wait for the other guests."

"Yes, Père. Hey Blaise." Draco grinned at his friend, and he and Teddy took Blaise down the corridor that lead to the duelling hall.

Harry smiled happily and pulled Lucius against him. Tom had ordered everyone to vacate the manor for the afternoon so the entrance hall was very quiet.

"Little one? What do you know about Blaise and Teddy's friendship?"

"They're very good friends Domine. They have been since they were children. Blaise's mother has certainly earned her reputation as a Black Widow, and she is addicted to Fairy Eggs."

"Fairy Eggs?"

"Yes, they have hallucinogen and slight tranquillizing properties. It's a very rare and expensive habit, and once you are addicted, your options are to continue to take them or die. Lady Zabini was introduced to them by her third husband when Blaise was six, and hasn't been capable of functioning since. I suspected both Blaise and Teddy's parents of being at the very least neglectful and so wouldn't allow Draco to visit their families. That meant that they both spent a lot of their childhood at Malfoy Manor visiting Draco."

Harry nodded. "That still doesn't tell me much about Teddy and Blaise's friendship, little one."

Lucius blushed slightly. "Sorry Domine. Blaise has always been very protective of Teddy. Teddy was always timid and shy, much like he is now, and Blaise took it on himself to look after his friend. Draco mentioned last year that Blaise had asked Theodred Nott for permission to court his son, but that Theodred had said no. Draco was very upset about it all."

"Huh." Harry leaned forward to kiss Lucius softly.

"Oi! Break it up..."

"It's not polite to ignore your guests..."

"In favour of kissing your bondmate."

"Might make your guests..."

"Feel unwanted..."

"And unloved!"

Harry and Lucius looked around to see Fred, George and Neville walking towards them from the fireplace. Harry laughed and released Lucius.

"Hey, sorry about that, we didn't hear you come in. Did you all come together?"

Neville grinned. "Yeap. I just happened to be at the shop when it was time to come here, and Fred and George kindly offered to allow me to use their floo."

"Offered?" George spluttered. "Do you remember offering, Forge?"

"Not even remotely, Gred!" Fred joined his twin in glaring at Neville. "We were ambushed!"

"Exactly! One minute we were happily minding our own business..."

"You know, doing some last minute things in the shop..."

"Stocking our shelves..."

"Helping customers..."

"And then suddenly, we were ambushed!"

"And somehow..."

"Not by any offer of ours..."

"The next thing we know, Neville is using our floo!"

Harry laughed at the put out expressions on the twins and Neville's satisfied smirk.

"Nev, this is my mate, Lucius Malfoy. Lord to the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. Lucius this is Neville Longbottom, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom."

Neville stopped smirking and bowed. "Lord Malfoy. I am extremely pleased to meet you."

Lucius inclined his head with a smile. "Likewise Mr. Longbottom, and please call me Lucius, any friend of Harry's is a friend of mine."

"Then please call me Neville."

Harry grinned happily. His mate and his friends were all getting along. It was a wonderful feeling.

There two loud cracks and Harry turned and saw that Rodolphus and Severus apparated into the entrance hall. Severus took one look at the group assembled around Harry and scowled.

"Oh Merlin, Rodol, I can't believe I let you talk me into this! Look at the obscene amount of Gryffindors. It's summer! My one happy Gryffindorless time of the year."

Harry laughed and gently pushed Lucius towards his friends. "Go see your friends little one. I'll show the 'Gryffindors' to the duelling hall."

"Did you here that Gred?"

"I know Forge! We don't even go to Hogwarts anymore..."

"And we're still managing to annoy Professor Snape!"

The twins grinned at each other and then at Severus whose scowl increased in intensity.

"Come on." Harry ushered his friends out of the entrance hall before Severus became too agitated. "Remember you're supposed to be being nice to everyone and giving them the benefit over doubt."

"What? You mean we're..."

"Not even allowed to annoy Professor Snape?"

Harry and Neville both laughed.

"Not tonight you're not. Severus is one of Lucius' best friends and we are attempting to get passed our differences. So you will be nice to him as well!"

Both the twins pouted.

14-14-14

"He's so different from the Potter we know from school. I mean I know you said he was, but I wasn't expecting him to be 'that' different. He's like a mixture between your Father and what I imagine the Dark Lord would be like, I felt as though he was ten years older than me or something."

Draco grinned at Blaise's description of his Père, he had been especially intimidating today.

"Yeah I know what you mean." Teddy agreed. "Did I tell you about when I first saw him on Friday?"

Blaise leaned forward. "No, what happened?"

Draco listened curiously, he hadn't heard this story either.

"Father and I were sitting in the chairs outside the Dark Lord's office, and suddenly Duke Peverell comes along. I jumped to my feet and pulled my wand on him, because I mean it was Harry bloody Potter in the Dark Lord's Manor for Merlin's sake. Only he just stared at me flatly, and then I realised that Father was standing as well and he was pushing my wand down. Then Father bowed to him.

"I was so confused, as you can imagine. Then Father greets him as Duke Peverell, as polite as though he was talking to the Dark Lord. Duke Peverell just nods and raises an eyebrow and suggests to my Father that he should explain things to me. Then he just enters the Dark Lord's office, without knocking. Father explained to me about Duke Peverell's new titles and that the Dark Lord had pretty much declared him his equal."

Blaise's eyebrows shot up. "Seriously? You're telling me that the Dark Lord has made Harry bloody Potter, the Boy Who Lived To Be A Pain In the Dark Lord's Arse, his equal? You guys didn't tell me that on Friday! Did they duel? They must have."

"Careful Blaise." Draco frowned. "Both the House of Gryffindor and the House of Peverell outrank the House of Zabini, you really don't want to piss him off by being disrespectful."

Blaise nodded and Draco continued. "And, yes, they duelled on Thursday night. Père duelled Lord Flint and Uncle Severus first and then the Dark Lord. He was amazing! It only took him about a minute and seven curses to knock out Flint. Uncle Severus' duel took longer, maybe five minutes, but I don't think he was really trying. It looked more like he was just enjoying the duel, rather than actually trying to win quickly.

"But the Dark Lord and Père duelled for over half an hour, and neither of them landed a single spell. I didn't recognise half the spells they used. The Dark Lord had actually made a rule that they weren't allowed to use spells that would kill one another, but within ten minutes of their duel their spells were completely deadly. They were completely equal! In the end the Dark Lord just declared that he was satisfied and Père agreed, and they stopped duelling."

Blaise had his mouth open in shock. "Ok, wow, so I really don't want to piss him off. He's not duelling today is he? Because that would be completely unfair."

Draco laughed and shook his head. "Nope, that's what I told him and he agreed. I was thinking though, I would love to see him duel again. Maybe we could ask him and Uncle Sev to duel for us."

"Yeah, I'm really curious now." Blaise turned back to Teddy. "So tell us the rest of your story."

Teddy nodded. "Right. So ten minutes later the office door opens and both Father and I jump to our feet and bow, because it was either going to be the Dark Lord or the Duke. When I looked up I saw Duke Peverell standing in the doorway with this scary smirk on his face and I could hear the Dark Lord laughing from inside the room.

"Duke Peverell told my father to go into the office and then just looked at me for a minute. I was scared, but all he did was tell me to sit and wait, and then he shut the door again. It felt like ages until the door reopened. This time the Duke just commanded to me come in, and called me Theodore, which was weird.

"When I got inside I realised my Father wasn't in there, and I asked the Dark Lord why and he just yelled at me to sit down. Next thing I know Duke Peverell has put a silencing charm up so I can't hear anything and he seems to be telling the Dark Lord off, and the Dark Lord just glared and nodded."

Blaise's feet, which had been balanced on another chair, fell to the floor in shock and he leaned forward. "He just nodded. No cursing or anything?"

"Nope. Then the Dark Lord and Duke Peverell started telling me about how upset they are with my Father, because of how he treated me. The Dark Lord said that he wanted to kill him but that Duke Peverell had convinced him to let me decide what happened to him. The entire time Duke Peverell kept interrupting the Dark Lord or taking over explanations, and I was sure that he was going to be cursed for it, but the Dark Lord didn't do anything.

"Then at the end of the meeting Duke Peverell glared at the Dark Lord and called him a 'horrible manipulative bastard'."

Draco laughed. "He didn't!"

"He did. And here I am thinking that I'm about to see my new guardian cursed into pieces and the Dark Lord snorts! Fucking snorts! And tells him to not to fight in front of the little minion."

"Theodore! That language is unbecoming of a member of our family!"

Draco and his friends all stood and spun around at the sound of his Père's voice. His Père was standing in the doorway, looking amused, and he had his Gryffindor friends with him.

Both Teddy and Blaise bowed slightly.

"I'm sorry, your grace." Teddy looked terrified, and Draco sighed. His friend still didn't trust his Père.

"Don't do it again. Alright then, introductions."

Draco grinned as his Père came and stood next to him. The Gryffindors followed him, and his Père ended up standing in the middle of the two groups. It was kind of amusing how short his Père was. He was even shorter than Teddy, who had always been short, and next to Longbottom and Blaise he looked tiny. When had Longbottom gotten that big?

"I know that we all know each other from school, but I think that I'm a perfect example that what one sees at Hogwarts isn't always the truth. So I invited you all here so that we could maybe get to know each other outside the categories of Gryffindor or Slytherin. Reasonable?"

Everyone nodded.

"Wonderful. Now since we are presuming that we don't actually know everyone as well as we think we do, how about everyone introduces themselves as though we were meeting for the first time."

Draco rolled his eyes at this Père's enthusiasm, but nodded along with everyone else.

"Right. Well I've actually already reintroduced myself to everyone, so how about Draco starts?"

Draco glared at his Père. "Hello. I'm Draconis Malfoy, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. But please call me Draco."

"Nice to meet you, Draco." The Weasley's chorused, and Draco found himself smiling slightly.

"We're Fred..."

"And George Weasley."

"Members of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley." The Weasley's finished their introduction together.

Draco grinned at Blaise and they turned to the twins. "Nice to meet you, Fred and George."

Everyone laughed and Draco could see a delighted smile on his Père's face. He was glad he had convinced Blaise and Teddy to give the Gryffindors a chance, it obviously meant a lot to his Père.

Blaise spoke next. "I'm Blaise Zabini, Heir to the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini."

"Nice to meet you, Blaise." The entire group chorused.

Longbottom spoke next. "I'm Neville Longbottom, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom."

As everyone chorused a reply, Draco stared at Longbottom. His Père had been right, this wizard was nothing like the one from Hogwarts. This one was confident and every inch a pureblood Lord, even if he hadn't come into his inheritance yet.

"I'm Theodore Nott, Heir to the House of Nott, please call me Teddy though."

"Nice to meet you Teddy."

"Brilliant." Draco's Père was positively beaming! "Who wants to duel first? I thought we could do this two ways. Either, the Slytherins duel one another, and the Gryffindors duel one another, and then their champions duel. Or we start with Gryffindor verses Slytherin matches."

"I like the champions idea." Neville grinned impishly, and Draco was reminded that his Père was planning on playing matchmaker between him and the Weasleys.

Everyone else agreed and so it was decided. Blaise and Teddy were going to start them out so everyone else found a seat. Draco almost laughed when his Père and Neville manoeuvred the seating arrangements so that Neville was sitting between the twins. He was sitting next to his Père who was quickly going over the rules again.

"No curses that will cause serious injury and no unforgivables. This is a friendly duel. Are you ready?"

"Yes, your grace."

"Alright then, bow and get started."

Draco watched as his friends began duelling. Blaise would win, he was by far the better dueller out of the three of them, but he always enjoyed watching.

"Aqua Eructo!"

"Glacius!"

"Stupify!"

"Protego...Expelliarmus!"

While Blaise and Teddy duelled, the audience made ooing and ahing noises. The twins started it of course, but Draco realised that it was actually fun. Soon he started cheering whenever one of his friends got a good hit in.

After a few minutes of duelling, Blaise hit Teddy's shoulder with a flying hammer of all things and then finished him off with a stunning spell. Everyone clapped and cheered as Blaise moved forward to rennervate Teddy.

The twins duelled next. Their duel was explosive and colourful. There were firecrackers flying around the room, and Draco's Père ended up having to put a shield up to protect the audience. Fred and George were both incredibly even in ability and power level and they seemed to know exactly what the other would do before the spell was cast – Draco started wondering whether one of them would come out on top, or whether they would have to call a draw.

His Father and Uncles arrived about seven minutes into the duel and moved to sit next to Draco, though only Uncle Rodolphus joined in the audience's cheering. Suddenly one of the twins, the one on the right, spun to the left and yelled,

"Levicorpus!"

The twin on the right tried to dodge it, but he was too slow and ended upside-down, laughing, as the twin on the left stunned him.

"Good job Fred!" Draco's Père called. "You guys have gotten a lot better!"

Fred let his brother down, and rennervated him, before turning back to answer. "Ta Hart. We've been practising!"

"I am impressed Mr. Weasleys, you are certainly better than I expected you to be. What is your spell source? Many of the spells you used were almost forgotten, and some I had never heard of."

Draco turned to look at his Uncle Severus, as surprised by the compliment as the twins seemed to be, perhaps he was given the same lecture about 'playing nice with Gryffindors'.

The twins grinned. "Thank you Professor..."

"That means a lot coming from you."

"Most of spells we found by accident..."

"While we were researching for our pranks..."

"Though some of them we invented ourselves."

"And some Harry taught us."

"Most of the books were in the Restricted Section..."

"At Hogwarts. Though some of them..."

"We bought ourselves."

Draco was fascinated, and slightly irritated, by the way the twins spoke in half sentences. He had read about how Idem Gemini twins shared a mind, but at the same time didn't. It made no sense, but watching them was amazing.

14-14-14

Lucius leaned against his Domine's side, watching as Neville and Blaise bowed to one another. They were the Gryffindor and Slytherin champions. Draco had put up a good fight, but Blaise had more power and better technique. The Gryffindor duels had been fascinating. While the Weasley twin's duel had been explosive and entertaining, the duel between Neville and Fred had certainly been surprising.

Before the two Gryffindors had begun to duel, everyone – except his Domine and Neville – had thought that Fred would be the winner. By the time the first few spells had been cast, nobody was under any delusions about how powerful Neville was. It had been obvious from the beginning that the Longbottom Heir was only playing with his opponent, much like Lucius suspected his Domine had played with Severus in their duel.

The look on Fred's face had been an obvious mix of surprise and arousal, and Lucius had been instantly reminded of his Domine's words about Neville proving he was a capable grounder. And, Merlin, had Neville proven his strength. The twins were now sitting next to one another whispering about something, and Lucius was pretty that they were deciding to allow Neville to court them.

Lucius' Domine squeezed his knee, drawing him out of his thoughts, and Lucius realised that the duel had already started. It was already obvious the Neville would win the duel. Blaise was holding up better than Fred had, but he was no match for the Longbottom Heir.

They flung curses back and forth and Lucius had to bite his lip to keep from laughing as the audience yelled encouragement and advice to their champion. Even Severus had begun to participate slightly, groaning whenever Blaise took a bad hit.

After ten minutes Neville finished the duel with a leg locker curse just as Blaise was stepping to the side, causing him to fall over, and the Gryffindors roared! It was amazing how much noise three Gryffindors could make, and Lucius was pleased to see his Domine enjoying himself.

After the congratulations had been given, Draco moved to stand in front of Lucius and his Domine.

"Uh, Père?"

"Yes, Draco." Lucius' Domine was stretched out, with one arm wrapped around Lucius.

"I was wondering, and Blaise and Teddy thought it was a good idea too, whether you and Uncle Sev could maybe do a demonstrative duel for us? It's just that you were so amazing on Thursday, and I would love to see you duel again, and Blaise and Teddy haven't seen you duel before."

"Huh." His Domine sounded surprised. "What do you think Severus? Wanna have another friendly duel?"

"Absolutely not!" Severus was scowling, and Draco groaned disappointedly. "But, I wouldn't mind a duelling you if Rodol joined me."

Lucius's Domine smirked. "Two on one? What do you say Rodolphus? You in?"

Rodolphus' answering smirk promised bad things. "Sure. But why only two? You're the Dark Lord's equal, Harry. How about we let Longbottom there play with the grown ups. Us three, verses you."

His Domine chuckled. "Alright then. You're on! Same rules as earlier? Or the rules from Thursday?"

"What do you take me for Potter?" Severus stood up and moved to stand in the middle of the hall. "Rules from Thursday, we aren't children."

"What do you say Longbottom? Up for another duel?" Rodolphus wiggled his eyebrows and stood as well.

"Sure." Neville grinned. "It's been a while since I last duelled Harry." He stood and stretched out his shoulders. "You coming Harry?"

Lucius sighed as his Domine took his arm from around Lucius and stood up, bouncing on his toes.

"Absolutely! This should be fun. Neville, since you weren't here on Thursdays the only rule is that you can't kill me."

Draco moved to sit beside Lucius as the four wizards took their positions.

"Is this a good idea Father. I mean I know he's good and nobody here wants him dead, but is he really 'that' good?"

Lucius sighed again and looked up at his Domine's gleeful expression. "I'm sure he'll be fine Draco."

Draco just nodded and they watched as the four duellers bowed and then began their duel.

It was extraordinary. Lucius wondered whether or not his Domine had been holding back in his duel against the Dark Lord on Thursday, or whether the number of opponents allowed him to be more flashy, but his Domine was unbelievably good.

He spun and twisted, jumped and flipped, rolled and blocked; all the while throwing curses that had his opposition rushing to avoid them. There hardly seemed to be three seconds between each spell that left his wand, and each spell was very accurate. The curses - like on Thursday - weren't exactly deadly, but were certainly life threatening, and yet, when Rodolphus was finally hit by a spell – ten minutes into the duel - it was simply a Fully Body-Bind Curse.

Two minutes later Neville was stunned and Severus followed him seconds after. Lucius joined the thunderous clapping that filled the room as his Domine grinned and moved to de-curse his opponents.

"Well, well, well, Harry. It would seem that you held back on me."

The entire room turned to the doorway at the sound of the Dark Lord's voice and the Slytherins all bowed deeply.

"You're one to talk Tom." Lucius' Domine said as he rennervated Neville. "You were holding back just as much as I was. There were plenty of cannon fodder level minions at that duel, no need to show everyone how powerful we are."

"No," The Dark Lord's voice was dry. "You'll just show a group of baby minions and Gryffindors instead."

"Ah, but they're baby minions with potential!" His Domine grinned. "And the Gryffindors are on our side, which makes them Gryffindory minions I suppose."

Lucius almost snorted when he saw everyone's shock as the Dark Lord laughed in response.

"Gryffindory minions indeed. Are you going to introduce me to them, Harry? Or should I simply take guessing as to their identities, personally I would put money on the red heads being Weasleys."

"Right, yes, introductions. Well you were right about the Weasleys. The one on the left is George Weasley, and the one on the right is Fredrick Weasley, but we just call him Fred.

"And this is the Longbottom Heir, Neville. Have you met the Zabini Heir?"

When the Dark Lord shook his head, Lucius' Domine beckoned Blaise forward.

"This is Blaise Zabini, who in a week with be Duke Zabini. He has agreed to meet with us this week.

"Fred, George, Neville, Blaise. This is Duke Thomas Slytherin, Head of the Archaic and Royal House of Slytherin. Though you all probably know of him as The Dark Lord, or He-Who-Has-A-Bloody-Long-Hyphenated-Name. At least my hyphenated name only has three words in it."

Lucius grabbed hold of Draco's hand in fright. Judging from Rodolphus and Severus' faces he wasn't the only one who was on the edge of a nervous breakdown. Why had he gotten an insane mate? But the Dark Lord just laughed.

"Moving on. There are some topics we need to discuss Harry. Maybe tomorrow?"

Lucius felt his stomach drop as his Domine thought about it and then shook his head.

"Can't, sorry Tom. I'm busy tomorrow. How about Wednesday afternoon?"

"That works. We can meet with the Zabini Heir then also." The Dark Lord turned his gaze onto Blaise. "Be here at four, boy."

Blaise bowed. "Yes, my lord."

"Well then. I will leave you to your evening."

With that, the Dark Lord strode out of the door, and everyone in the room gave a relieved sigh. Well everyone except Lucius' Domine, who just grinned.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

This story is slash and will have m/m sex scenes.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading, and thank you all so much for your amazing and encouraging reviews.

15-15-15

The group spent the next hour socialising. Harry was thrilled to see the Gryffindors and Slytherins getting on, he needed all his allies to be on good terms. Rodolphus and the twins were sharing trade secrets; Neville and Draco were discussing politics; Teddy and Severus were discussing quidditch of all things; which left Harry and Lucius talking to Blaise. Lucius had relaxed, and was curled up against his side, as Blaise respectfully questioned Harry about the changes.

It amused Harry how timid Blaise was around him. Blaise was at least a foot taller than him, and probably weighed twice as much as he did, but it was obvious that Harry intimidated him. They were the same age and were both Dukes, though the House of Gryffindor outranked that of Zabini, and yet it seemed obvious to everyone that they were in no way equals.

"So, your golden boy persona has always been an act, your grace?"

"Oh no, not in first year, or most of second year. But towards the end of second year I realised how deep Dumbledore's manipulations ran, and decided that I didn't want to be his little soldier anymore. So I started studying, and training, researching about the Wizarding World – and not just the propaganda that is spouted to the muggleborns. It took a few years, and a lot of hard work, to get to where I am now."

Harry sighed and squeezed Lucius softly, it was embarrassing to think how naive he had been as a first year.

"What gave it away, your grace? Dumbledore's manipulations, I mean." Blaise leaned forward interested.

"Well it all really started when Hermione was petrified. Ron spent a lot of his time visiting her or worrying about his sister, which gave me a lot of time alone. I was astounded by how much time I had to study, and then I started getting Outstanding grades. I realised that they had been purposefully distracting me from doing my homework. At first I couldn't figure out why. But then one day I heard Ron talking to Hermione about how he couldn't distract me properly without her, and that Dumbledore was sure to notice my improved marks soon and get annoyed.

"After that everything just fell into place. I realised that everything I knew about the Wizarding World came from Dumbledore's flackeys, and all it took was a little extra reading to discover some of their lies."

"But you still pretended to be the same arrogant, prejudiced, lazy Gryffindor you had been before?"

"Absolutely!" Harry grinned. "I knew that I didn't have the power to do anything about it. Dumbledore had declared himself my magical guardian, and I was still weak and uninformed. So I bided my time until I actually had power to change things."

"Well that's not exactly true." Neville put in, turning from his conversation with Draco. "You did plenty at Hogwarts, it was just all in secret."

"Really?" Draco looked fascinated. "Like what?"

Harry stifled a groan as all the conversations stopped and everyone listened for Neville's answer.

"He built a network. Everyone knew that Ron and Hermione were really possessive over Harry, so no one questioned it when he befriended them but then asked them to keep it quiet. I was one of the first I think. When Harry befriended me, I truly was everything I'm known to be at Hogwarts. But he taught me to duel, and tutored me on the Wizarding World – all the things my Gran had left out. Harry did that with a lot of people, even some older than him. It wasn't until last year that I truly realised what Harry had done. Some of his friends included me, Cedric Diggory, Adrian Pucey, Terry Boot, even Andrew Kirke."

"They're all heirs to Noble Houses." Draco exclaimed. "Wow. Pucey really? You really did keep everything a secret Père. I would have never suspected. But why not me? Or Blaise?"

"I couldn't risk it. I was trying to keep a low profile, and if I had come to either of you – offering friendship – you would have noticed something was up and probably gone to your Father.

"And Neville, I didn't only befriend the pureblood heirs you know." Harry pointed out scowling slightly at his friend.

"That's true." Fred pointed out as he and George moved their chairs closer to the conversation

"You befriended us after all..." George nodded.

"Or at least allowed us to befriend you..."

"Bloody hard work that was!"

Blaise looked confused. "You didn't want to be friends with them, your grace?"

Harry sighed. "It wasn't that I didn't want to be friends with them, I just..."

"He didn't trust us." George finished.

"Yeah. I was a little Weasley-shy when I realised that even my meeting at King's Cross Station, first year, was a set up."

"But we convinced him to trust us..."

"In the end at least..."

"Took us over a year, it did."

"Why did you want to be his friend so much?" Neville asked. "That's a long time to try and get someone to be friends with you for no reason."

Harry and the twins all laughed. "They wanted to know how I could tell them apart. I was the first person they had ever met who never mixed up their names."

"Yeah, it was a nice change..."

"To have someone know who was who all the time."

"That and we wanted to know what his secret was..."

"How he could tell us apart."

"So?" Severus scowled. "What was the secret?"

Both twins pouted. "He still won't tell us!"

"Though we think Neville knows..."

"Because he can tell us apart now too."

Neville and Harry exchanged a smirk. When Neville had first decided that he wanted to court the twins he had asked Harry for his blessing, and then for his way to tell them apart. Harry had been happy to help his friends and so had given Neville his closely guarded secret.

Harry had only been able to tell the twins apart since second year. He had spent some time over the summer reading schoolbooks, the ones he had hidden from his uncle, and had come across a spell that marked an object in a way that was invisible to everyone except the caster. The first day of his second year, Harry and cast the spell on George. It had worked brilliantly, as whenever Harry looked at George he saw a blue spot, and if there wasn't a blue spot he knew it was Fred.

"Master Harry Potter Black Gryffindor Peverell, sir? Dopey is being here to tell yous that theres being guests fors you in the Entering Hall."

Harry groaned as his Gryffindor friends mocked him for the name Tom's Elves had given him.

"Show them in here, Dopey."

"Of course Master Harry Potter Black Gryffindor Peverell, sir. Right away Master Harry Potter Black Gryffindor Peverell, sir." The elf bowed and disappeared.

Neville grinned. "And you were teasing Duke Slytherin about having a long name."

Harry rolled his eyes but joined in the laughter. He conjured two more chairs in their rough circle, and then stood so he could greet the guests at the door.

When Bill and Percy arrived Harry stepped into the corridor, out of sight of the others, and gave them a hug.

"Hey. It's good to see you. How are you guys?"

Bill grinned happily and put his thumbs in his belt buckles. "We're good, I think. Right Perce?"

"Yes, we're good." Percy echoed and he smiled happily at Harry. "I've got some news for you actually. It's Dumbledore related."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Really? Is it bad?"

"Not too bad. I would classify it more as an irritation than anything."

"Huh. Well I'll be sure to seat you next to me for dinner, and you can fill me in on all the details. I'm glad you're here actually, I want to talk about ideas for the next year at Hogwarts and would love your input."

"Sounds like fun." Bill smiled. "Is Snape here?"

Harry looked at Bill suspiciously. "Yeah, he is. Why? You aren't allowed to annoy him! I've already given this lecture to Fred and George."

Percy laughs. "Oh he doesn't want to annoy him. He wants to fuck him."

"Percy!" Bill blushed slightly.

"What? It's true. You've been into Professor Snape for years, since you were at school I think."

Harry grinned. "Is that right? Well it should be fun then."

Percy laughed at Bill's glare, and Harry lead them towards the others.

"Bad day Percy? I've only ever heard you this blunt at the end of a truly awful day."

"Yeah." Percy sighed. "I just can't get all that stuff about Mum and Dad out of my head. I saw Dad today, I had never realised just how broken he always looks. I really want to do something to help him, you know?"

Bill put an arm around his brother. "We will, don't worry. Charlie firecalled me today to tell me that he's taking next week off work so he can come home to help us decide what to do."

Harry grabbed Percy's arm. "Come sit by me."

They both sniggered softly at Bill's expression when he realised the only spare seat was next to Severus. The group did introductions again, and then Harry called for attention.

"Dinner will be served in about forty minutes, and until then I would like to discuss something with you all."

He sprawled himself out in his chair, ensuring that one arm was wrapped around Lucius.

"Tom and I are infiltrating Hogwarts. But we are doing it in a completely above board and legal way. If Tom and I combine our allies, we easily have complete control over the school board.

"We want to make a lot of changes to Hogwarts, new teachers, subjects, rules and more. Tom and I decided that we wanted to focus group of sorts to make suggestions of changes they would like to see. And here you all are."

Harry grinned teasingly at the group. "So if you had the power to change things at Hogwarts what would you change? And why?"

Harry was very surprised when Teddy spoke first, but then if he had learnt anything about Teddy over the weekend, it had been that academics were important to him.

"A new history teacher, your grace. Binns is dreadful, and completely ruins the subject for everyone."

"Yeah, and a new Care of Magical Creatures teacher too." Blaise added.

"Charlie might be interested." Percy suggested. "He's been considering moving by to England if he gets a job here."

"Charlie would be awesome!" Fred grinned.

Draco leaned back in his chair. "I think there should be an 'Introduction to the Wizarding World' class that's compulsory for muggleborns, and an elective that teaches about politics and stuff."

"Oh Merlin yes!" Percy agreed. "I would have loved to take that class if it was offered."

"A healing class would be awesome." Neville suggested leaning forward so his elbows were resting on his knees. "As an elective I mean, maybe for fifth year up. That way people who want to become healers could learn a few of the basics."

Harry raised his eyebrows, he hadn't though of a healing class. Would Pomfrey be able to teach it? Or would have they to hire a new Professor? Speaking of new classes.

"I was thinking of a muggle fighting class, as an elective."

Rodolphus nodded. "Yeah, I can see that being useful Harry. Would you add a duelling class as well?"

Draco laughed. "Oh do you remember Lockhart's duelling club in second year? That was a disaster!"

Harry chuckled. "Yeah it was, though Severus beating Lockhart in the duel was probably one of my favourite parts of that year. But, yeah I think I duelling class would be useful. Or maybe an offensive magic class, and a properly run duelling club."

"You should change the uniform."

"It's more traditional than practical."

"Only traditionalists and upper-class purebloods..."

"Wear robes outside the workplace these days."

"It's silly to have a bunch of twelve year olds..."

"Running around in heavy robes."

Severus scowled at the twins. "That's not true! I wear robes and I am not an upper-class pureblood, nor am I a traditionalist."

"That's true." Fred chuckled.

"But you're Professor Snape..."

"You're in a class of your own!" Fred laughed for a moment before looking seriously at Severus. "Think about it though Professor, the uniform requires other clothes under the uniform anyway."

"Realistically the robes are only there because of tradition." George pointed out.

"And while we know that some traditions are worth keeping..."

"Robes are more of a hindrance than anything."

Harry watched amused as Severus glared at the twins before turning to him. "As much as I hate to admit it, they make a good point. I can't even begin to count the number of potions explosions that have been caused by students robes."

"Alright." Harry nodded thoughtfully. "I'd like to run a suggestion by all of you. Tom and I were discussing the problems that are caused by the House system, and we came up with an idea."

"You can't be considering demolishing the House system." Lucius exclaimed, seeming to echo the thoughts of everyone in the room. "Hogwarts wouldn't be Hogwarts without it."

"You're right, and Tom and I don't want to demolish the House system. We just want to fine-tune it slightly." Harry reassured them. "The way Tom and I see it, the House system as it is now breeds prejudice and hate. We get sorted into houses when we're eleven and are judged by our houses for the rest of our lives. And some of the time the hat isn't even sure where it wants to put us because most of us don't fit purely into one house."

"He's right." Fred said thoughtfully.

"The hat considered putting us in Slytherin..." George said.

"But in the end decided that our Gryffindor was slightly stronger."

"I was almost a Hufflepuff." Neville admitted. "But then it saw my Gryffindor side and decided I would do better there."

"I was nearly a Ravenclaw." Teddy said quietly.

"The hat wanted to put me in Hufflepuff." Lucius said. "When I refused, the hat tried to put me in Gryffindor because of my 'sheer pigheadedness'. I had to blackmail it into putting me into Slytherin."

"Really?" Draco stared at Lucius in shock. "The hat didn't even talk to me, just screamed Slytherin."

"Exactly." Harry spoke again. "I had to beg not to be placed in Slytherin, and Tom was almost put in Ravenclaw. Very few people truly belong to one house, and yet we treat everyone as though their house defines them."

Harry almost laughed at everyone's astonished expressions.

"All Slytherins are seen as evil, all Ravenclaws - geeky, all Hufflepuffs – crybabies, and Gryffindors are seen as lazy, stupid and pigheaded. We don't want to get rid of the Houses, just the problems the Houses bring."

"And what is your great plan to solve all of Hogwarts' problems?" Severus drawled.

"It has multiple steps. Firstly, we don't sort first years. If we give them a year to get to know one another without the House prejudice, once they are sorted it shouldn't matter what House they are in."

Harry paused, expecting arguments, but everyone was listening intently.

"So we sort them in second year, but then we resort them in fifth year. That way if the students have changed over the years, they aren't stuck with a house that no longer suits them. If I was resorted last year there is no way I would have ended up anywhere other than Slytherin.

"And lastly the seventh years live in a separate set of rooms. They still belong to their Houses, but they get their own common room and their own single dorms, so that they can remember that in the real world there aren't Hogwarts' Houses separating us."

Harry scanned the group to try and read their expressions. "So, what do you think?"

"Bloody brilliant, Hart!" George enthused.

"It would certainly solve some of the problems." Severus said slowly. "But what about the Heads of Houses? It would be hard for the students to trust and confide in their Head of House if they changed Houses."

"You could have a teacher responsible for each year group as well as the Head of House." Blaise suggested. "Someone who is responsible for each year of students from their first year until they leave."

"Yeah, that'd work." Neville nodded. "Different Heads of House are different as well. McGonagall never really had anything to do with us unless we were in trouble. I don't think any of the Gryffindors have ever trusted her really, let alone confided in her."

"I like the idea." Rodolphus grinned. "There will be some kinks you will have to iron out, but it should work brilliantly."

Harry smiled. They were really going to make a difference.

15-15-15

"So Perce, what's the news about Fudge?"

Lucius' Domine looked up from his meal and across the table at the Weasley. The seating arrangements meant that there was an 'adult end' and a 'youth end', and Lucius was enjoying the break from teenage company. Bill, Severus and Rodolphus all looked expectantly at Percy causing the younger man to blush nervously.

"Dumbledore is moving to regain his position as the Wizengamot's Chief Warlock."

"Damn!" Lucius exclaimed. "Are you sure? Why haven't I heard about it yet?"

"The vote isn't for two weeks, the official notices are being sent out to members of the Wizengamot tomorrow."

Lucius' Domine leaned forward slightly. "What does Fudge think of it all?"

"He's really worried about it." Percy answered. "Problem is, as things stand at the moment, there isn't a hope of Dumbledore not succeeding."

Bill frowned. "Tell me if I'm wrong, because Wizarding politics is definitely not my field of expertise, but doesn't the law prevent Dumbledore from being reappointed once he's been dismissed?"

Wincing Percy replied. "Normally, yes. But Dumbledore is claiming that his dismissal was illegal and therefore the law doesn't apply."

"Fuck." Severus scowled. "That old bugger!"

Bill was looking confused. "On what grounds?"

Percy sighed. "Unfortunately Fudge, in all his idiocy, declared himself as Dumbledore's replacement."

"But what makes it illegal?"

Lucius leaned against his Domine's side before answering. "Because the position cannot be held by anyone who already has an ex officio role within the Wizengamot. While Cornelius does have a family seat, his power in the Wizengamot mostly comes from his position as Minister and as such he cannot be the Chief Warlock."

"Not that he'll be Minister for too much longer." Percy commented. "He's getting more and more pressure to resign."

"So," Lucius' Domine leaned back and put an arm around Lucius. "We need to provide a candidate that can beat Dumbledore. It shouldn't be too hard. If we get Fudge on board with our choice, Dumbledore won't stand a chance. Between mine and Tom's supporters and Fudges supporters we easily have majority vote."

"That's true." Severus mused. "But who? They need to be firmly on our side, be powerful and cunning enough to do the job well, and be able to win Fudges approval."

Lucius' Domine smirked. "Isn't that obvious? Lucius will do it. Fudge loves him, he is well known pureblood Lord, and has worked in politics his entire adult life."

"Oh brilliant!" Rodolphus exclaimed. "Lucius would be perfect, and with Chief Warlock on our side we have almost complete control over the Wizengamot."

Percy smiled. "Oh thank Merlin. It amazes me, Harry, how you always manage to turn an irritating situation into a perfect opportunity!"

Lucius' Domine grinned. "It's a gift, Perce."

15-15-15

Two days later, Tom sat sprawled on a chair listening to Harry explain all that had been discussed during the 'duelling and dinner' evening.

"And they liked our plans for the resortings and such, though someone suggested that we have a teacher that is responsible for a year group from first year through to seventh year. They also want a healing class, a duelling class, new uniforms and they want some teachers replaced. Did you have any more ideas about who to appoint as Headmaster?"

Tom sipped his tea before replying. "Severus still seems to be our best candidate as far as I can see."

"Except for the fact that three quarters of the school hates him?"

"Yes, well except for that. But that isn't too much of an issue really. Technically the students don't have to like the Headmaster, they just have to obey him."

"That's true I suppose, and I agree. Severus really is the best option. There is no one else who is qualified, loyal to us and isn't currently an outlaw."

Tom nodded. "Exactly. So Severus it is then. Do you want to tell him? Or should I?"

"We can tell him about it when we have our first High Council meeting. Have you decided on a date yet?" Harry smirked teasingly. "Have you even decided who to have in the council?"

"Of course I have!" Tom scowled. Admittedly he had only come to his final decision that morning, but Harry didn't need to know that.

"We will meet with them on Friday at one."

Harry winced. "Lucius won't be able to make it."

"Why ever not?" Tom scowled again. "What could possibly be more important than this?"

Harry stretched out his leg and took a mouthful of his tea. Tom lessened his scowl when he realised that it had no impact on the younger wizard.

"He's meeting with Fudge. You will have heard by now that Dumbledore is attempting to regain his position as Chief Warlock?"

Tom nodded. He had heard about that yesterday.

"Well, Lucius will be running against him. He's meeting Fudge on Friday to gain his support. Even though Fudge resigned yesterday he still has a significant following, Dumbledore doesn't have a chance if we combine our votes."

Tom raised his eyebrows. The plan was brilliant, but he was unused to being out of the loop. It was strange to have an equal, someone who made decisions without discussing it with him first.

"Very well." He admittedly grudgingly. "Lucius can miss the meeting."

Tom scowled at his companion's satisfied smirk. "Anything else I should know?"

Harry bit into a biscuit. "Well, Lucius. Draco, Teddy and I will be moving into Malfoy Manor tomorrow. Also the Weasley twins have agreed to allow Neville Longbottom to court them, but then you probably didn't need to know that. "

Harry grinned cheekily before becoming serious. "Actually, I meet with Madame Bones yesterday."

"Oh?"

"I wanted to explain our ideas to her. Everything will go a lot smoother if we have the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement sympathetic to our cause."

Tom nodded thoughtfully. It was a good idea, and it would be amazing if it worked.

"So, how did it go?"

"Rather well I think. She doesn't exactly trust me, telling someone that you are working with Lord Voldemort can cause that, but she is going to keep quiet about what I told her and has agreed to meet with me again. I'm pretty sure I can win her over, well to a point at least. I'll keep working on her."

Tom realised he was smiling. Harry had managed to do more in the last week than his Death Eaters had managed in a year, at this rate they would have completed their goals within a year.

Harry ate another biscuit. "Blaise should be here in a few minutes. What are you planning on telling him?"

"Not too much. I just want to inform him that we will be requiring his Hogwart's Board vote, and ensure his support for our cause. He is still a child, he doesn't need to know all the details."

Harry laughed. "It amuses me when people say those kind of things. You do remember he is the same age as I am? A month older actually."

"It's different with you." Tom snapped to mask his surprise. He had forgotten how young Harry was.

"Huh. Really? Though I do understand that. I certainly feel older than him. Tempus, Blaise should be here by now. Shall I go and invite him in?"

At Tom's nod, Harry stood up and brushed his robes to ensure there were no crumbs on them. Time for their next meeting.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story would have have been possible.

Thanks for reading

16-16-16

Lucius froze as he stepped out of the Floo. Narcissa was still here. She was supposed to have left Malfoy Manor the day before, that was why they were moving in today. He stared at her for moment before moving away from the Floo, to make room for the rest of his family who would be coming through soon.

"Lucius." Narcissa was sitting haughtily on one of the settees in the Entrance Hall.

Lucius inclined his head, unsure how to respond properly. His Domine was going to be angry, he had specifically ordered Narcissa, by a letter, to never approach Lucius under any circumstances. Lucius had been given the same order.

"Narcissa. I wasn't expecting you here."

Narcissa laughed. Her tinkling laugh that never failed to leave Lucius feeling as though he was less than he should be.

"You didn't consider that I might wish to meet the wizard who has replaced me as your keeper?" She sneered. "Harry Potter, Lucius, really? Though I don't know why I am surprised. They always did say that the worth of the submissive can be judged by the strength of their dominant mate, and you were never worth much. And now you are mated to half-blood, and the enemy of your Lord. I doubt the Dark Lord will miss your service though, you never were particularly useful."

Lucius bit his lip and fervently hoped that his Domine would arrive soon. He always hated it when Narcissa went off on her monologues, they always left him feeling worthless. His dominant mask had never worked with her, she had always known that is was just that, a mask, and had taken great satisfaction in ripping it to pieces with pointed insults.

Though when he thought about it, the comment about his worth was hardly an insult. Narcissa had no idea how powerful his Domine was.

Narcissa gazed at him dispassionately. "I know that I certainly won't miss you Lucius, I will regret the years I wasted bonded to you however. Why I ever accepted your Father's bribe to marry you I will never know, all the galleons in Britain couldn't have made our marriage worth it."

Lucius heard the Floo flare behind him and closed his eyes in relief.

"Mother?" Draco sounded confused. "What are you doing here?"

Lucius felt some of the tension leave him as Draco moved to stand beside him in support.

The Floo flared again distracting Narcissa from her son's question.

"Really Draconis. You are still spending time with that Nott boy? I have told you time and time again that someone as low-class as that is not acceptable company for you. His blood is hardly any better than a mudblood's. Though your Father would probably encourage you to befriend one of those as well, especially now that he is mated with a half-blood."

Narcissa sneered again, and Lucius could feel Teddy move so he was hidden behind Draco.

"Narcissa..."

Lucius broke off when the Floo flared again. He turned around and saw his Domine standing on the hearth looking at the group of them confusedly.

"Is everything alright Lucius?" His Domine moved forward and wrapped an arm around Lucius.

Lucius could tell the instant his Domine saw Narcissa. The change in his Domine was startling, his back stiffened and his expression closed off and became emotionless. Lucius had never seen his Domine looking this regal or cold before.

"I see." For a moment, Lucius' Domine gazed at Narcissa who was still sitting on the settee, then he turned to look at the boys.

"Draco, would you please take Teddy to the family wing and help him choose a suite?"

Draco nodded looking relieved. "Yes Père, of course."

Lucius watched as Draco and Teddy hurried out of the hall, eager to be away from the tension.

"Miss Black." Lucius' Domine' voice was disdainful as he lead Lucius to the second settee in the room. "What is it that I can do for you? I was under the impression that were to have moved out yesterday. Did we give you insufficient time? I do not imagine that it would have taken more than a week to have the Elves move your belongings."

Lucius held back snickers as Narcissa moved quickly to her feet and then curtsied respectfully. His Domine's voice did tend to have that impression on people. Lucius on the settee and watched as his Domine sprawled out arrogantly, watching Narcissa with contempt.

"N-no, my lord." Narcissa looked out of her depth. It was apparent that the encounter was not going as she had thought it would.

"You will address me as, your grace, Miss Black. I am the Duke of two houses, and will be addressed as such. Do you understand?"

Lucius bit his lip to hide his laughter at the confused look on Narcissa' face. It reminded him of a something he had learnt about in Muggle Studies all those years ago, something to do with karma.

"Yes, your grace."

Lucius felt his Domine' arm move so that it was wrapped around him. "You may sit."

Narcissa nodded and sat down, she looked decidedly less graceful than she had earlier.

"You haven't answered my question, Miss Black. Why is it that you are here?"

Narcissa raised her chin proudly, obviously trying to regain some of her standing.

"I wished to see my son and Lucius before leaving. I have spent almost twenty years married to Lucius, your grace. I thought those years deserved at least an acknowledgement, and a farewell."

"I see." Lucius' Domine did not look impressed. "And so you decided to disregard my orders for you to stay away from my mate? I would have you remember Miss Black that, not only am I the Duke of Peverell, I am also the Lord of the House of Black. Do not cross me again. I will not be so forgiving in the future."

Surprise flashed across Narcissa' face. "I...how..."

"Your cousin Sirius made me his heir and your sister Bellatrix killed him earlier this month." Lucius' Domine told her coldly.

"Of course, your grace. I apologise, I..."

Lucius watched as his Domine interrupted her, apparently not falling for her contrite act. "It would be wise for you to ensure that you mind me from this point on, Miss Black. You do not want me as an enemy. What are your plans for your future?"

"Baron Arceneau has invited me to stay with him, so I will be staying at Arceneau Castle."

"Is he one of your lovers?"

"I...yes, your grace."

"Do not bring shame upon the Ancient and Noble House of Black, Narcissa."

Lucius observed his Domine's disdainful and heartless expression, and Narcissa' angry and humiliated expression. It was nice to see Narcissa getting a taste of her own medicine. She had been treated him with cruelty and contempt for almost two decades, and he couldn't even begin to describe how relieved he was that part of his life was over.

"Of course not, your grace."

"Good. I will give you an allowance of one hundred galleons a week. You may apply to me if you need more."

Lucius stood up with his Domine, and Narcissa quickly followed them.

"That is all, Narcissa. I think it would be best if you left immediately."

Narcissa nodded and curtsied before apparating away. A moment later Lucius found himself in his Domine's arms as his mouth was being ravished. He moaned as his lips were nibbled on, and his mouth dominated, and then he moaned again when his Domine released his mouth.

"Please...Domine."

For a moment all Lucius could do was pant and tremble with arousal, and then he realised his Domine was gently laughing at him.

"How about you show me to our rooms, little one?" His Domine leered at him teasingly, and Lucius could feel himself blush. "We can continue this there."

Lucius nodded breathlessly, before quickly leading his Domine towards the Master Suite.

By the time they had reached their suite, Lucius was almost overcome by arousal. His Domine had stopped multiple times to press him up against a wall and kiss him senseless.

When they entered the bedroom, Lucius watched as his Domine took in the décor.

"Nice room. I love the big bed." His Domine's leer made Lucius' cock twitch. "How about we christen it?"

On his Domine's order Lucius scrambled onto the bed and positioned himself so he was lying on his back. He watched as his Domine moved to the bed and looked down at him. Lucius loved this! The passion, the love, knowing that he pleased his mate. Knowing that his mate found him appealing. It had been so many years since his experiments with sex at Hogwarts, and Lucius had begun to fear that if he finally did end up find his mate he would be to old to be found attractive. But he had found his mate! And his mate thought that he was beautiful. He was incredibly happy!

"Look at you, lying there, waiting for me."

Lucius pulled himself out of his thoughts and realised that his Domine had stripped out of his robes and was standing at the foot of the bed – naked.

"I love that you're mine." His Domine slipped one of Lucius' shoes off. "I'm sorry that Narcissa managed to trap you into seeing her. I wanted to protect you from her."

Lucius hissed as his foot was tickled, and he tried to yank his leg away.

"No you don't." His Domine kept hold of his foot, and tickled it more. "You just lie there and feel."

His other shoe was taken off and Lucius forced himself to keep is legs still as both his feet were tickled.

His Domine moved so he was kneeling the bed, and undid the top button of Lucius' robe.

"I love your skin, little one. It's so pale, just waiting for met to taste it."

Then he leaned down and sucked on the small area of skin that had been revealed. He sucked hard, Lucius was sure that there would be a mark, and then he gently licked the patch of skin while undoing the second button. The pattern continued, button by button his Domine undid his robes and then left a mark before licking the area soothingly. By the time they were at the fifth button Lucius was struggling to stay quiet; by the tenth button he was begging.

16-16-16

And here iseth a sex scene. You all know the drill - if you want to read it the link to this story on AO3 is on my profile page.

16-16-16

It was the first time Teddy had ever had dinner at the Malfoy's formal dining table. Though he had spent a lot of time at Malfoy Manor in the past, Lady Malfoy had refused to eat with a 'peasant', so Teddy and Draco had always eaten elsewhere.

The formal dining room looked different than it had in the past. Lord Peverell had taken one look at it and decided that the table was ridiculously large and that, except for occasions when they had company, he would shorten it. The table was still reasonably large, but they could at least have a conversation across it.

It was nice, Teddy thought, to have a home. Everyday something new would stand out to him, something that proved that he belonged with this family. Today there had been many of them, the fact that all his things had been moved automatically, just like Draco's; being given his own suite of rooms and being told that he could decorate how he wanted, being allotted a personal House Elf, because it was tradition that every member of the Malfoy family had one. Now though, sitting opposite Draco – where traditionally the second son always sat – the reality that he belonged here, was wanted here, was really starting to sink in.

"What is going to happen with Mother?" Draco looked first towards Lord Malfoy, and then Duke Peverell.

"She informed us that she is moving to France." Duke Peverell answered blandly.

"Will I ever see her again?"

"Do you want to see her again little dragon?" Lord Malfoy asked.

"Well, no, not even remotely. She had always been cruel and uncaring to both of us, I'm just curious."

"Yes, you will likely see her again." Duke Peverell scowled slightly. "She moves in similar circles to us. You will, however, never have to speak to her again."

Draco nodded, seemingly satisfied.

Teddy looked up from his meal as he heard his name being called.

"Yes, Duke Peverell?"

"Tom was wondering whether you have decided what you want done with your Father?"

Teddy froze. He had thought about it, obviously. But he still didn't know what he wanted to do. He had wished many times, often during a beating, that his Father was dead, but to be the reason he was killed was something entirely different. He never wanted to see him again though, and if his Father was released then he would run into him at some point. It was inevitable.

"It's alright if you haven't Teddy." Duke Peverell reassured him. "You can take all the time you want."

"I'm not sure. I don't want to be the reason he is dead, but I never want to see him again either." Teddy bit his lip nervously.

"You have more options than the Dark Lord executing him or releasing him Teddy." Lord Malfoy told him gently.

"If you wanted he could stay in the Dark Lord's dungeons indefinitely. That way he is still alive, but away from you. It is no different than what the Wizengamot would sentence him to if he was charged with abusing you."

Teddy flinched. He hated it when people talked about the way his Father had treated him.

"I like that option, my lord."

"Good," Duke Peverell smiled. "I'll tell Tom tomorrow. What are your plans for tomorrow?"

"I thought that I might meet Blaise for the afternoon. We normally do our Art homework together."

Teddy blushed as Duke Peverell stared at him for a moment. He couldn't know about him and Blaise could he? No one except Draco knew, and he would have never betrayed them like that.

"You take Art?"

Teddy breathed out softly, relieved. "Yes, your grace. Both Blaise and I take ten subjects. We both enjoy Art, but know how important our other classes are as well."

"Huh." Duke Peverell looked confused. "I didn't even know that Art was an option."

"It's not really." Draco answered him. "It's more of a club, kind of. Except that there's homework, and it's held in a class period, and you have to pass to get to do in the next year."

Teddy huffed. This was a constant point of contention between him and Draco.

"That sounds a lot like a class to me, Draco." Lord Malfoy looked like he was trying not to smile.

"It is a class!" Teddy informed them. "It's just a really small one, that isn't heard of much."

"Sure, sure!" Draco rolled his eyes. "It's not on the class list, Teddy. Classes aren't classes unless they're on the class list!"

"That's because it's an exclusive class!"

"There is no such thing as an exclusive class! Exclusive 'club' maybe, but classes are inclusive!"

"Art is about talent Dray! It's about having a magical gifting. There is no point taking the subject if your not magically gifted. Just like Divination! People are either capable or they aren't, no point in people taking the class if they aren't capable."

"But Divination isn't exclusive Teddy, Art is!"

"Yes but Divination should be! It's silly having a large class, almost all of who are never going to see anything!"

"Alright." Duke Peverell broke into the argument. "Teddy, you are right. Divination should be invitation only – and that is one of the changes that Tom and I plan to make. I haven't come across magical gifting in art in any of my readings, what is it exactly?"

Teddy grinned cheekily at Draco, who was looking slightly sulky. "Magical portraits can only be created by people with a magical gift in art. When I paint, my magic is involved and becomes part of the picture."

"Huh. That's pretty cool!" Duke Peverell looked fascinated and Teddy grinned. "What are you doing tomorrow Draco?"

Draco looked up quickly, his pout disappearing. "I found this amazing book in the Dark Lord's library, and I was hoping I could go back and finish it tomorrow."

"I will be there for the afternoon. You can come with me." Duke Peverell turned to Lord Malfoy who was watching him with a fond expression. "I was thinking Lucius, you should come to Riddle Manor after your meeting with Fudge. That way you might catch at least the end of the meeting."

"Of course Domine."

"Brilliant. Teddy, how about you spend the afternoon with Blaise. You need to be back by six though, alright?"

Teddy grinned. Six whole hours with Blaise! "Yes, your grace."


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Here is this weeks chapter a day early. I'm going away tomorrow and wanted to get his out before then.

Thanks for reading

17-17-17

"You can't! It's tradition!"

"Tradition? Sometimes tradition is worthless! It has been sixty years since you were at Hogwarts, Herbert. Times have changed!"

"So what? You would have the students running around in muggle clothing? Do you have no respect for our culture?"

"Just because I think there is need for change, doesn't mean I don't respect our culture! Cultures change all the time, they evolve, become more advanced. Stagnated cultures dry up and die."

"You are mad, Lycoris! Mad! There is no need for change! Just as there is nothing wrong with Wizarding robes! Why would you want to change them. Leave well enough alone, boy!"

Harry groaned quietly and leaned back in his chair. The 'High Council', as Tom had decided to call his new version of the Inner Circle, had been discussing things for hours now. For the first hour they had all been timid and respectful to the extreme, but then they started arguing with one another. They still treated him and Tom with careful respect, but the noise was loud and irritating and they weren't getting anywhere.

"Enough!"

The room fell silent and all the men turned to look at Harry. They were all seated around a large wooden table. Tom and Harry sat at each end, and there were five men between them. Severus and Rodolphus were on one side and Parkinson, Flint and Avery were on the other.

"This arguing is pointless. Move on." Harry snapped.

Lord Lycoris Parkinson and Lord Marcus Flint lowered their eyes with a muttered. "Yes, your grace."

Severus and Rodolphus both stifled smiles and Herbert Avery rolled his eyes. Harry didn't mind Severus and Rodolphus' reactions, they were both his friends and they seemed to find Harry's transformation from 'laid back and friendly' to 'arrogant Duke' amusing. Apparently his glare didn't faze them. Avery, however, was was one step away from being cursed for disrespect.

Harry looked down the table at Tom who just smirked at him. Harry growled under his breath. Tom had spent the entire meeting observing and smirking at the arguments, forcing Harry to lead the meeting – the lazy bastard.

Harry looked down at his parchment. "We will be introducing new classes to Hogwarts, and replacing some of the new teachers. So far the new classes that are confirmed are: Healing, Politics, Duelling, Muggle Fighting and Introduction to the Wizarding World. Introduction to the Wizarding world will be compulsory for all first and second year students who have grown up in the muggle world. Any thoughts?"

"So they will be electives?" Parkinson asked. The dark haired wizard had been the most interested and supportive so far.

"Yes, except for Introduction to the Wizarding World."

"Have you considered providing a compulsory Introduction to the Muggle World class as well?" Rodolphus asked twirling his quill. "It could be held at the same time as the Wizarding World one, so the muggleborns won't be the only students with an extra class. It would also help remove some of the uneducated prejudice at a young age. The Muggle Studies Professor could teach it."

Harry nodded and wrote down a few notes a spare piece of parchment. "That would work."

"Uh, your grace?" Flint asked nervously. Harry held back a smirk at the other wizards meek behaviour. It was such a change from his interactions with the older wizard at Hogwarts. He nodded for him to continue.

"What about language classes?" Flint asked cautiously. "If students knew Latin their other classes would come easier. There are also French, German, Mermish, and Gobbledegook. You could have compulsory Latin classes for the first three years maybe? And the other classes could be electives."

Severus nodded. "A basic knowledge of Latin would greatly decrease the number of potions accidents I have to deal with."

"You mentioned teachers, your grace." Parkinson looked down the table at Harry. "What teachers will you be replacing?"

Harry didn't answer for a moment as he finished noting down Flint's idea. Then he looked up. "We definitely need a new Divination teacher, also Care of Magical Creatures, History, Muggle Studies and Defence against the Dark Arts – though we will be renaming that Magical Defence. On top of that we need teachers for all the new classes, except for Healing – Pomfrey will hopefully teach that one."

"Have you any thoughts on who you want to fulfil the positions?" Parkinson asked.

Harry glared at Tom who was still refusing to take any part of the conversation. This was his 'High Council!' He should be doing some of the work.

"We are going to offer the Care of Magical Creature's Professorship to Charles Weasley."

Severus grimaced. "Another Weasley? Aren't two in one castle enough?"

Harry grinned. "Be thankful, I was considering offering the Defence position to the Weasley twins."

"Don't you dare!"

Harry laughed. "Don't worry. Only a crazy person would make those two teachers."

"That is not even remotely reassuring." Severus answered dryly.

"Hopefully Lucius will agree to be the Politics Professor." Harry said getting back on track. "He would be great. I'm considering Remus Lupin for the Defence position. He is the best Defence teacher we have had in five years, but the fact remains that he is Dumbledore's man – and a werewolf."

"We could make it work if you really wanted it to." Severus said looking as though he had just bitten a lemon. "Maybe he could be an option to fall back on."

"That would work." Harry nodded. "Ideally I would like the Defence professor to also teach the Muggle fighting class."

"But you would have to find someone who is proficient with both, your grace." Flint pointed out mildly. "I don't think I have ever heard of anyone who can do both."

Harry raised his eyebrows and leaned back in his seat in surprise. "Really? Is it that rare?"

"Yeap." Rodolphus smirked at him, and Harry got the idea that Rodolphus knew where this conversation going. "It is almost unheard of. Why? Have you heard of someone who can do both Harry?"

Harry glared at his friend. "Not as such. Though, I read that it was rather common in Asia."

Rodolphus' smirk grew. "Have you studied Muggle Fighting by any chance, Harry?"

"Yes." Harry scowled at Rodolphus. It was like the Runes discussion all over again. How was he supposed to know that the things he was learning were rare?

"You wouldn't happen to be proficient in Muggle Fighting with you Harry?"

"Yes Rodolphus. I am proficient in Muggle Fighting."

"Oh Merlin." Severus scowled and whacked his head against the back of his chair. "It's the Runes situation all over again."

"The Runes situation?" Tom leaned forward interestedly and Harry felt like cursing him. Of course Tom chose this conversation to get involved in.

"It was brilliant." Rodolphus enthused. "It happened when Draco, Teddy and Harry were all sitting around talking about their Runes O.W.L."

Tom looked confused. "But Harry didn't take Runes. Severus gave me a report on all his doings while at Hogwarts, and Runes was most definitely not on the list."

Harry stared at Severus and then Tom incredulously. "You were spying on me?"

"Of course I was spying on you." Tom with a smirk returned. "You were prophesied to defeat me."

"To vanquish you." Harry corrected. "And I did that as a baby. Moving on."

"Wait, no." Tom interrupted. "I want to hear the Runes story."

Harry glared at him.

"Right," Rodolphus started again. "So apparently Harry has been teaching himself Ancient Runes and he has been using a Gryffindor girl's notes to keep up with the class. Only this girl forgot to write down that half of the class outline is a joke. So Harry has memorised both the Futhark and Futhorc alphabet, which is more that the Runes Professor has done."

Tom laughed loudly and Parkinson and Flint both had smiles of their faces, Avery was scowling grumpily.

"Seriously?" Tom snickered. "The exam must have been a breeze then."

"Not really." Harry frowned. He was still confused about that. "From my conversation with Draco and Teddy, I had three extra parts to my exam. The first and second part were incredibly easy, but the third part was a little harder. Have you ever tried translating Futhorc to Futhark? It's really hard. And the fourth part was incredibly challenging. I had never even tried to create a set of wards using runes before."

Harry looked up and saw that everyone, except for Avery who was still scowling, were looking at him in shock.

"Lucius didn't tell us that bit." Rodolphus said.

Parkinson leaned forward. "And you said that other students who were taking the exam only had the first section?"

Harry nodded.

"Fascinating. I had heard stories, but..."

"But what, Lycoris?" Tom asked.

"Well, about twenty years ago, when my Father held the Parkinson seat, the Board of Governors and the Ministry decided that the exams would be multi-tiered. That way if someone took an O.W.L exam but was actually at N.E.W.T. Level they would be given the opportunity to demonstrate it."

Harry was confused and by everyone else's expressions he wasn't the only one.

"For example. Duke Peverell took the O.W.L. exam. But he must have showed a proficiency for the subject above O.W.L level, so a second section of the exam was added. If he had then showed proficiency above N.E.W.T. Level, another section would have been added."

"Really?" This time it was Tom leaning forward in fascination. "That's incredible. So Harry could have passed his N.E. ?"

"Actually, by the sound of it Duke Peverell's results will show that he has a Mastery in Runes."

Harry winced as everyone turned towards him in amazement. Ancient Runes had been the exam he had felt the least confident about, before and after. He was not looking forward to getting his Hogwarts letter. How was he supposed to have known that he was learning above the normal level?

"Moving past my academic excellence." Harry sat up straight and picked up his quill. "Where were we?"

Rodolphus grinned. "We were discussing how you had mastered both Magical Defence and Muggle fighting."

Harry groaned and leaned his head back to glare at the ceiling.

"Duke Peverell?" Flint started and then waited for Harry's nod to continue. "If I may, how do you feel your other exams went?"

"I don't really see what that has to do with anything." Harry grimaced.

"Come on Harry." Rodolphus grinned. "I want to hear this answer as well."

Harry glowered at the room. "Fine. Runes was probably one of my worst exams."

Severus groaned. "I think I liked you better when I thought you were a lazy brainless idiot. Learning that James Potter's son is a genius is not good for my mood."

"I am not a genius!" Harry denied. "I don't see what this has to do with anything anyway!"

Flint looked as though he was regretting the question. "I, uh, I was thinking, your grace, that if your other exams went as well as your Runes one, you will have finished at Hogwarts. So you could teach the Magical Defence class."

"That's a brilliant idea!" Rodolphus grinned. "You'd be the best person for the job, there's no point in you still studying at Hogwarts if you have learnt all they can teach."

"I will consider it." Harry was officially sick of this conversation. "Tom, why don't you tell everyone who the new Headmaster will be."

As Tom began his explanation of who they had picked the Headmaster, Harry gazed at the men around the table. Parkinson and Flint were looking curious; Avery was still scowling; Rodolphus was fiddling with a quill; and Severus' face was blank

"...And so Harry and I have decided that Severus will take over from Dumbledore."

"He will never be trusted!" Avery spat.

Tom's expression became murderous and most of the table leaned away from him.

"I was not asking you for your opinion, Herbert! I was informing you on a decision that was made by your superiors. Know your place!"

"My superiors?" Avery growled. "I have always followed you, Tom, but I refuse to bow to this uppity half-blood!"

Harry sat up abruptly, noting with some pleasure that at least Flint and Parkinson flinched. He had been expecting this since for the last few hours, Avery had made it very clear that he only held contempt for him.

"Crucio." Tom glared at the man.

Avery shuddered in his seat, biting his lip to keep from screaming.

"Duke Peverell is my chosen equal, Herbert! By disrespecting him, you disrespect me!"

After about a minute Tom released the curse and Avery slumped in his chair.

"I had hoped, Herbert, that you would be able to assist me but it would seem that you are too stuck in your traditions. You are dismissed, this is the last time that our old friendship will save you from facing the consequences of your actions."

The table watched silently at Avery pulled himself out of his chair and left the room.

"Nothing quite like a bit of torture at an advisory meeting, eh, Tom?" Harry smirked as Tom snarled at him.

"Severus! You will be meeting with Harry on the matter of Hogwarts. He will tell you all that we expect of you." Tom snapped.

"Yes, my lord."

"Good!" Tom's scowl grew. "Moving on!"

"Oh." Harry exclaimed. "I just remembered, Teddy has decided what he would like to happen to his Father."

"Well? What is it?" Tom looked faintly excited and Harry knew that he was hoping to be able to torture the man.

"Life long imprisonment in your dungeons."

Tom's face fell. "See? This was exactly what I was talking about! You have simply joined me to convince me not to kill people. Am I allowed to kill anyone?"

Harry laughed. "Sure you are. You are welcome to kill Bellatrix Lestrange for example. I simply suggested that if you killed Teddy's Father he might be a little cross about it and not want to follow you anymore."

"Damn you and your logical pacifism!" Tom growled, and Harry laughed again at the other men's faces. Severus and Rodolphus didn't look too shocked, having already seen Harry and Tom interact before, but Flint and Parkinson seemed to be expecting curses any minute.

"Master, sir!"

The entire room turned to stare at the Elf who had appeared next to Harry and was grabbing his robe.

"Master Draco is telling Flong to get you, sir. Master's mate is hurt!"

Harry stood and grabbed the Malfoy Elf by the neck.

"Where?"

"In the Entrance hall master! Master Draco is to be telling Master that Master's mate is being hurt bad!"

Harry threw the Elf away and ran for the door. Lucius hurt? How? Who could have hurt him? They were in the Dark Lord's Manor for Merlin's sake! Who would attack Lucius here? Unless he had been attacked elsewhere and had apparated to the Manor for help. As Harry ran down the corridor he could feel his magic reacting to his emotions - doors were flung open ahead of him, the one person he passed was pushed against the wall.

As he entered the entrance hall Harry saw Lucius lying on the ground with Draco kneeling over him and he ran up to them. Falling to his knees next to Lucius, Harry was relieved to see that his mate didn't have any visible injuries and was still concious.

"Little one? Are you alright?" Harry asked desperately, pulling Lucius' head into his lap. "Draco what happened?"

"I...it...I had gone for a walk, a break from reading, and I saw Father apparate in, so I went to greet him. But then there were spells, and Father was fighting back. It was Aunt Bella! Father almost had her beaten, but then Rabastan cursed him, I have never even heard of the curse before. Why would Aunty Bella and Rabastan do this? Father just dropped, and I thought he was dead, and they just left. I didn't know what to do, I don't know what's wrong with him. So I made Flong go and get you. What's wrong with Father?"

Draco was crying, clutching onto his Father's hand and Harry reached out to pull Draco against his side. Draco buried his face into Harry's shoulder and sobbed. Harry purred soothingly, struggling to hold back his growls of anger. How dare Bellatrix and Rabastan attack his family?

He turned his attention back to his mate who had been tiredly watching them. "Are you alright little one?"

Lucius nodded tiredly. "I'm fine Domine. Still feeling the effects of Rabastan's curse. It was the Devorabit industria curse." Lucius must have noticed Harry's confused face. "It's an energy draining curse. It slowly drains the victims energy until they're dead."

Harry felt his Veela's despair. He couldn't lose his mate! He wouldn't! There had to be something he could do. Draco's sobbing had increased and Harry purred reassuringly.

"Is there a cure little one?"

"Not as such." Lucius sounded exhausted. "Severus has a potion that will halt the effects of the curse, but no one has managed to create potion to return the drained energy."

Harry sighed in relief. His mate wasn't going to die. Everything would be alright. He looked around the hall and saw Severus standing with the rest of the Council in the hall, watching. He called him over.

"Severus! Lucius says he was cursed with an energy draining curse."

"Devorabit industria." Lucius rasped.

"He said you have a potion to at least stop his energy from being drained any further."

"Fuck!" Severus exclaimed, his hands pulling at his hair. A moment later he pulled himself together and nodded. "Yes, I have a few vials of it at home."

"Send a House Elf for them." Harry commanded before turning his attention back to his mate and son. He stroked Lucius' hair with one hand and rubbed soothing circles in Draco's back.

"Harry."

Harry looked up to see Tom standing a few feet away and growled. How dare Tom talk to him. If Tom had managed to keep a handle on his followers none of this would have happened.

"What Tom?"

"I need to know who did this? I promise Harry, I will do everything in my power to help you find them."

"Bellatrix and Rabastan." Harry snarled at him. "Both your followers! One of which you assured me was secured in your dungeon!"

Tom looked taken aback. "Rabastan? Are you sure?"

If Harry hadn't had both his mate and his son in his arms he would have attacked Tom.

"Of course I'm fucking sure! Draco saw the entire thing! Apparently Bellatrix attacked Lucius the moment he Apparated in, and when Lucius had almost beaten her he was attacked from behind by Rabastan." Harry glared at Tom. "I would think very carefully before doubting the words of my son, Tom! Especially since _my _mate was just attacked by_ your _followers, in _your_ manor!"

Tom nodded looking slightly chastised. It still amazed Harry the human reactions he managed to produce out of the Dark Lord.

"Alright. I will deal with it." Tom moved away just as Severus came forward with a small purple cone shaped potion vial in his hand.

"This is it." He said handing the vial to Harry. "Help him to drink it, there should only be about three mouthfuls in there.

Harry swished the purple liquid around before gently tipping some into Lucius' mouth.

Lucius gagged at the first mouthful before swallowing it. "This is absolutely disgusting!"

Harry laughed tightly. "Yes, Severus' potions always are."

Severus scowled. "Not just mine. Almost all potions are disgusting."

Draco pulled his face out of Harry's robes with a sniff. "Yes, but yours are always especially gross, Uncle Sev."

When Lucius had finished the potion, Harry looked up at Severus. "When can I move him? I need to get him back to the Manor."

"Give it a few minutes for the potion to finish working, the more energy he uses the faster the energy drains." Severus looked at Lucius sadly. "I promise you Luc, I will find the cure for this. It just became my number one priority."

Lucius nodded weakly. "I know you will, Sev. Thank you."

Rodolphus came to stand beside Severus and Harry growled threateningly before he could stop himself. It had been Rodolphus' brother and wife who had cursed Lucius! He needed to get his family back to the safety of their manor.

"Lucius?" Rodolphus glanced worriedly at Harry before turning his gaze to his friend. "I am so sorry. The Dark Lord just told us that it was Rabastan and Bellatrix who did this, and, well, I am just so incredibly sorry Luc! I had no idea."

Lucius moved to sit up but Harry held him down and growled again.

"It's fine Rodol. Just because you and Rabastan are brothers and you and Bellatrix are married, doesn't mean that you are at all responsible for their actions. It wasn't your fault."

Harry disagreed. Rodolphus was the Head of the House of Lestrange, and therefore was responsible for the actions of the members of his house. Rodolphus didn't look particularly convinced either.

"Can I move yet, Sev?" Lucius asked from his place on the floor. "I feel a little better, as though the energy isn't being drained anymore."

Severus nodded slowly. "Yes, it should be safe to move. You need to take it slowly though. You are going to be a lot more tired than you normally would be."

Lucius nodded and tried to sit up again but Harry held his down again.

"Do not move, little one!" Harry growled. "Just because Severus has said that you can move again doesn't mean that you may."

Lucius scowled up at him. "What? So you're going to carry me then are you?"

This time Harry's growl was angry. "Do not push me, Lucius!"

Lucius huffed but looked chastised. "Sorry, Domine."

Harry took a deep breath. His Veela instincts were stronger than they had every been before. Every part of him was crying out for him to go after the people who had dared attack his mate, to lock Lucius, Draco, and Teddy – when he found him – away from people, and to attack anyone who came near them. He looked up.

"Severus, can you find Teddy for me? He is supposed to be studying at Zabini Manor. I need him home, safe."

Severus nodded. "Of course."

"Good." Harry took another deep breath before pushing Draco away from him gently. "Up you get, Draco. It's time to go, you go by Floo and your Father and I will Apparate there."

Draco nodded and stood shakily. He wiped his face with his sleeve before moving to the elaborate stone fireplace.

Harry turned his gaze back to Lucius. "I'm going to cast a Feather Weight charm on you, little one, so that I can carry you easily. Alright?"

When Lucius nodded, albeit sulkily, Harry cast the charm and gathered Lucius into his arms. He nodded farewell to the wizards still in the hall before Apparating them to Malfoy Manor.

17-17-17

A few hours later Lucius was lying in his bed eating his dinner. His Domine had carried him into their suite and then commanded him to stay in bed. Both Draco and Teddy had spent some of the afternoon entertaining him but they had been sent downstairs to eat.

The exhaustion caused by the curse was strange. He felt as though he was on the tail end of a tiring week, except that he hadn't had a tiring week at all. He was having trouble processing the day; so much had happened. Bellatrix had tried to escape and when he attempted to stop her Rabastan had attacked him. What were they thinking? Both the Dark Lord and Harry would be out for their blood now. Lucius had known that neither of them were quite right in the head after Azkaban, but he hadn't realised they were that unbalanced. Admittedly Bella had been a little crazy pre-Azkaban as well.

Lucius was incredibly glad that Rodolphus hadn't changed much during his stay in the prison, the last few weeks would have been much harder without Rodolphus' support.

Lucius looked up from his meal as he heard someone enter the suite. Maybe his Domine was back from his meeting with the Dark Lord. After ensuring Lucius was safe, his Domine had left to organise a manhunt for Rastaban and Bellatrix. He had put the house under lockdown while he was away, insuring that nobody besides him would be able to enter.

"Good evening, little one."

Lucius smiled happily as his Domine came to sit on the bed next to him. "Good evening Domine. How was the meeting?"

"Good. All the wizarding families allied with Tom and I have been informed of Bellatrix and Rabastan's betrayal. I spoke to Madame Bones to let her know that they have gone rogue, and that Tom cannot be held accountable for their actions. Rodolphus has ensured me that they have no access to to any of the Lestrange Properties, and Baron Arceneau has been informed of the situation – just in case Bellatrix decides to take refuge with Narcissa. How are you feeling?"

"Tired, but I think that's a given. It isn't too bad, we caught it quickly. Thank Merlin, Severus had a vial of that potion already made."

"Yes, I asked him about that. He told me that he tries to keep at least one vial of potion for every known curse. Apparently he has been building his collection since Hogwarts, he puts them under a charm that stops them from ageing. It's a brilliant idea."

"Yes." Lucius smiled. "It is. The curse isn't too bad. I'm definitely not sick enough to be bedridden." Lucius glared pointedly at his Domine.

His Domine laughed. "I know, little one, and tomorrow you can get up. I just need to be sure that you are alright. You really scared me today. I couldn't bear to loose you!" He raised Lucius hand to kiss it. "My beautiful mate."

Lucius blushed and looked away.

"How did your meeting with Fudge go?"

Lucius shifted to a more upright position."Well, I have his support. He is such an insipid man. I am so glad I won't have to work with him anymore. The Chief Warlock job wouldn't be at all enjoyable if he was still Minister. Having to work alongside him would be horrid."

"Has the date for the Wizengamot's vote for the new Minister been set yet? "

"Yes, the twenty seventh of July, two weeks after the vote for Chief Warlock. Candidates have until the sixteenth to put forth their names."

"Has anyone put their names forward yet?"

"Just _Rufus_ Scrimgeour and he wouldn't be ideal. He's too stubborn and independent. There is no way we could come to an agreement with the ministry if he is Minister. We need another candidate."

"Any suggestions?" His Domine stretched his legs out on the bed.

"Well Madame Bones would be a good Minister, but she wouldn't accept it. She likes her current job too much. I could probably do it, if I had to, but I'd rather not. A senior Auror who is well respected would work, do we have one of those?"

"Well I don't know about Tom, but I do. Kingsley Shacklebolt. Do you know of him?"

Lucius was surprised. "Yes, I thought he was firmly Dumbledore's man though?"

His Domine laughed. "Yes, so does Dumbledore."

"How did you...?" Lucius trailed off.

"He was already starting to notice some of Dumbledore's faults. I just talked to him, shared my knowledge and aspirations. We get on very well."

Lucius hummed thoughtfully. "He would be an excellent candidate and if you played it right you could get Dumbledore's votes as well." He turned to look at his Domine. "Do you think I will still be able to be Chief Warlock with this curse?

"Yes, if you want to. I had hoped you would take the Politics Professorship at Hogwarts, but I don't think you will be able to do both."

Lucius rested his hands on the duvet in front of him. He would love to be a Hogwarts Professor, he loved teaching. But he would also enjoy the position of Chief Warlock. If he was the Chief Warlock he could help the Dark Lord and his Domine's plans to, but if he taught at Hogwarts he would be working with his Domine.

"You don't have to decide now, little one. Think about it and we can talk about it in a few days. We still have four days until our candidate has to declare themselves."

Lucius nodded, sighed and leaned against his Domine's side tiredly.

17-17-17

A.N: The effects of the "Devorabit industria" curse is based on M.E. (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) also known as CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrom). M.E./CFS is a medical disorder that my mother and two of my younger sisters have.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

18-18-18

Three days later, Harry was sitting in Tom's office again. He felt as though he had spent a horrid amount of time there over the last two weeks. Maybe he should ask Tom for his own office in Riddle Manor, it would make everything a lot easier when he had to meet with the Death Eaters.

He glared at Julius Bulstrode, the Death Eater who had been put in charge of finding Bellatrix and Rabastan.

"You haven't found any sign of them? Today is Monday! It's been three days! How the hell have fifteen trained wizards not found one sign of them in three days?"

"I-I'm sorry your grace. We've been looking. They've just disappeared."

Harry stood up angrily and took some satisfaction when Bulstrode flinched. He started pacing "People don't disappear! Wizards and witches don't just disappear! They are out there somewhere! You just haven't found them yet!"

Bulstrode shivered. "Yes, your grace."

Harry stopped pacing and glared at him. "Well? Go find them!"

He watched as Bulstrode bowed to him, then the Dark Lord, before rushing for the door. The minute the door was closed behind Bulstrode, Tom started laughing. Harry spun around to glare at him before throwing himself into the nearest seat.

"What's so funny?"

"You are." Tom smirked at him. "Somehow, you are just as scary as I am - despite the fact that you haven't ever cursed them, are a sixteen year old boy, and are the size of a first year."

"Fodio!" Harry smirked as the stinging hex made Tom drop his quill.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"I am not the size of a first year. I'm at least the size of a second year." Harry grinned as Tom scowled at him and cast a healing spell on his hand.

"Moving on." Tom picked his quill up again. "Has Lucius made a decision about the Chief Warlock position?"

"Yes, he says he would rather teach."

"Really? Our candidate has to declare tomorrow."

"It's alright, I have another candidate on standby. I just wanted to discuss it with you before he declared though."

"Who?"

"Lord Bartholomew Kirke." Harry announced proudly.

"Kirke?" Tom sat back in his chair and stared at Harry. "But he's firmly Neutral. The Kirke family have always been Neutral."

"Technically yes. But then we are almost Neutral these days." Harry laughed at Tom's scowl. "Alright, so we aren't Neutral, but Kirke supports our ideas and plans for the Wizarding World. He would make a brilliant Chief Warlock."

"I don't know the man. But I have heard good things about his work in the Wizengamot. He is very respected, by both Light and Dark."

"Exactly. So Fudge won't have any problems with voting for him, and neither will our supporters."

"Very well. Kirke for Chief Warlock. I presume you have a candidate for Minister of Magic as well?"

"Yeap. Nobleman Kingsley Shacklebolt."

"Shacklebolt." Tom frowned. "Isn't he one of Dumbledore's men?"

"According to Dumbledore, yes. In reality, no." Harry grinned. He loved surprising Tom. "He's been mine for months. He's perfect for the position. He would have Dumbledore's votes, and Fudges, and ours. It would be almost unanimous."

"And you're sure he's on our side?"

"Absolutely. Well as long as our side remains mostly peaceful."

Tom grinned. "This is fantastic! Both the Minister and the Chief Warlock will be ours and Dumbledore will have no idea until it's done."

"Exactly!" Harry grinned in reply. In three weeks they would have control of the Ministry. "Do you want to start changing things in the Ministry straight away? Or are we focussing on Hogwarts to start with, and then coming back to the Ministry?"

"We should wait I think. Do you want some tea?"

"Yes, please." Harry paused until the tea was delivered. "Alright, Hogwarts, we need to meet with your Council again soon. Our last meeting was interrupted."

Tom nodded and sipped his tea.

"The Board of Governors meets on Friday. So I will start introducing changes then. I think I need to start by calling for a new Headmaster. It will make the rest of it a lot easier. Otherwise he will fight every change."

"No, don't do it like that." Tom put down his tea and leaned forward. "You shouldn't go until we have both the Chief Warlock and Minister sworn in, otherwise Dumbledore might get suspicious. We have enough votes to make the little changes without you. Have Zabini start with the small things, a new History teacher, a Latin class, a new Defence teacher. Maybe he could propose the idea of having teachers to look after each Year Group.

"Then you can come in with the big changes, like removing Dumbledore and the resortings. Better yet, do that after Neville Longbottom has turned seventeen."

Harry considered the idea. It made sense, though he would hate not being involved. The longer they kept Dumbledore in the dark the better. Besides if they waited until August there was a chance Mr. Weasley would have divorced his wife and accepted his Lordship. That would be another vote in their favour.

"That would work. Though I would have to talk to Noblemen Boot and McLaggen and insure we have their vote. If they both vote with Dumbledore it would be a draw."

"Can Zabini handle it?" Tom asked, resuming drinking his tea. "He would be the best person to propose the changes. He has first-hand experience in Hogwarts at the moment, and he's new."

Harry nodded slowly. "Yes, I think so. I will meet with him, Flint, Lucius and Parkinson this week to plan everything."

Tom grinned. "If I had known you would be this helpful I would have stopped trying to kill you years ago. What are you doing for the rest of the week?"

Harry sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Well, I'll meet with Blaise, Flint, Lucius and Parkinson, I also need to meet with Kingsley. The Weasley's are having a week of family meetings, some of which I will attend, I need to meet with Boot and McLaggen, also with Kirke. I have a few meetings in the muggle world tomorrow, and I need to meet with Madame Bones again. I'm supposed to be teaching Draco and Teddy how to duel, and help them memorise the Futhark Rune alphabet and they want me to teach Blaise as well. I want to talk to Severus about his research into curing Lucius, and I need to start learning about the Malfoy, Potter, Black, Peverell and Gryffindor estates.

He groaned took a gulp of tea. "There is just so much to do."

Tom laughed. "Busy week then."

Harry poked his tongue out.

"You said muggle meetings. I wasn't aware you had any muggle dealings."

Harry grimaced. "I have a few gradings scheduled." He saw that Tom looked confused. "You could say that I'm taking my Mastery exams for two different forms of Muggle fighting."

"Really? You should definitely be the Defence teacher Harry!"

"I will be younger than some of them! I'm not arguing that I'm not qualified, but I really don't think that teaching people I went to class with for five years is a good idea."

"Rubbish!" Tom scoffed. "Didn't you teach them all last year. With that little club you ran?"

"You are creepily well informed." Harry told him. "Besides, that was different!"

"Fine." Tom set his tea cup down. "I'll make you a deal Harry. _If_, when you get your results, you discover that you don't have to attend Hogwarts anymore, and the _if_ children you taught in your club all get higher marks than normal, then you teach. Otherwise I won't bother you about it again."

Harry sighed. "Fine!"

18-18-18

Two days later Harry leaned tiredly against the back of his chair. He and Lucius were sitting around the table in one of the many small meeting rooms in Malfoy Manor waiting for their guests to arrive. Harry had decided not to meet the visitors in the Entrance Hall, both he and Lucius were exhausted. The last few days had been incredibly busy. There was just so much to do and he had been working eighteen hour days. Admittedly some of that time had been spent teaching Draco, Teddy and Blaise to duel and helping them with their homework, but that was just as tiring.

The curse seemed to have halved Lucius' energy levels. He was always tired, and spent most of his days sitting down doing nothing. Rodolphus had been a regular visitor, and Harry had had to overcome his anger towards the man. Yes, Rodolphus should have had more control over the members of his House, but the attack wasn't his fault.

The Floo alert rang three times and Harry looked at Lucius, taking hold of his mate's hand.

"They're here. How are you going?"

"I'm fine, Harry." Lucius smiled tiredly.

Harry smiled back. Over the last few days Lucius had decided that he felt secure enough in their bond to call him by his name. As much as it aroused him to hear his mate call him Domine, it was wonderful to hear his name from Lucius' mouth. It made their relationship feel more real.

"I'm glad." Harry pulled Lucius's chair so it was directly next to his. "You can lean on me if you get tired, little one. Everyone will understand."

Lucius smirked at him. "You just want a reason to be touching me."

Harry laughed. "Yeah, that too."

Blaise appeared in the doorway looking unsure. "Duke Peverell?"

"Come in Blaise." Harry commanded. "Are the others with you?"

"Yes, your grace." Blaise took a seat opposite Harry, and Flint and Parkinson filed through the door after him and bowed.

"Duke Peverell."

Harry sighed and leaned back in his chair, squeezing Lucius' hand. He was too tired for another meeting.

"Have a seat."

He waited until they were seated, before starting again. "Welcome. I'm sure you have figured out why you are here. You are all members of the Hogwarts' Board of Governors. All of you are aware of some of the changes that Tom and I are making at Hogwarts for this coming year. Because I am Duke Gryffindor and Tom is Duke Slytherin we could make these changes without the Board of Governors, but I am trying to stay below the radar at the moment and Tom is an outlaw.

"Because of this, the most convenient way to make the changes is through the Board of Governors. This is where you come in. I am sure you are all aware that the first Board Meeting of the Summer is in two days, on Friday. I won't be attending, nor will I be using my Potter and Black votes, because that would give the game away too early. So Tom and I have decided to rely on you four."

Harry scanned the wizards faces. Parkinson looked eager, while Flint and Blaise both looked nervous. Lucius just looked tired.

"Tom and I have created a list of changes we want you to push through on Friday, and another list of ideas we would like you to introduce for thought." Harry passed them all parchment.

"Latin class?" Flint seemed both shocked and thrilled that his idea was being implemented.

"Yes. As you can see they are just the smaller changes. But it means that when I get involved in a month I only have to worry about the big things."

"Severus for Defence teacher?" Parkinson looked up from his parchment. "I thought you wanted him for Headmaster?"

"We do, but we need to start advertising for a new Potions Professor now."

"Right." Parkinson nodded thoughtfully. "So, how do you want us to do this?"

"Blaise will be introducing most of the ideas. He can claim current first hand experience, and he is new – so it isn't suspicious that he has lots of new ideas. He is also the only Duke on the Board so that gives him some automatic sway as well as his two votes.

"Flint, you will be supporting him. You have only recently graduated so you have recent experience as well. Parkinson and Lucius will back you up."

Harry paused as everyone nodded in agreement. "Good. Blaise, you need to remember that you are the Head of the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini. I know that it is new, but, until I come, you are the highest ranking person on the board. Use that. In the meeting, Dumbledore isn't your Headmaster, he is simply a Nobleman who is employed by you.

"That goes for all of you. Dumbledore is an employee of the Board, and all of you outrank him. Treat him with respect, but demand respect in return.

"Lucius will be demanding a new Care of Magical Creature's Professor. It's nothing new for him, but what is new is that we have the votes to make it happen. Flint, you will be suggesting that each year group have a professor responsible for them, a Dean if you will. Talk about how your younger sister gets ignored mostly by the faculty at Hogwarts and that you think a Dean would solve that."

Flint looked startled. "My sister, your grace?"

"Yes, Flint, your sister." Harry rolled his eyes. "She's a third year Ravenclaw this year."

"Yes, your grace. I just..."

"You didn't think that I knew you had a younger sister." Harry finished for him. "Well I do. Parkinson, you just need to act as usual. Both Noblemen Boot and McLaggen will be voting with you. Not always both at the same time, but enough that every idea I want passed, will be. Does everyone understand?"

"Yes, your grace."

"Brilliant." Harry leaned back against his chair tiredly.

"Your grace?"

"Yes Blaise?"

"I was wondering how your, uh, gradings went?"

Harry sighed. "They went very well, thank you. I passed both of them."

"Congratulations, your grace!" Blaise enthused. "That's amazing."

"What are gradings?" Parkinson asked curiously.

Harry gestured for Blaise to answer.

"Duke Peverell said that they're kind of like Mastery Exams for Muggle Fighting."

Both Parkinson and Flint stared at Harry amazed.

"And you did two of them in one day?"

"Yes Flint I did. It was easier for me schedule them like that."

"That's amazing, your grace!" Parkinson grinned. "Why two though?"

"There is more than one kind of Muggle Fighting. I now have my Mastery in three of them."

"You really should be the Defence Professor next year, your grace!" Flint exclaimed. "You would be amazing!"

Harry groaned as Blaise's face lit up. "You would be extraordinary, your grace. You're an awesome teacher. My duelling ability has increased exponentially after just two lessons."

Parkinson and Flint both grinned. "See, your grace. Everyone thinks you should."

"I said that I would consider it." Harry snapped.

All three men ducked their heads quickly.

"Sorry, your grace."

Sighing Harry waved a hand dismissively. "You should all leave. Remember everything I have told you!"

"Yes, your grace."

The three men all stood and after saying their farewells to Lucius left quickly.

"That wasn't very nice, Harry." Lucius said softly.

"I know. I'm just so tired and everyone keeps going on about it." Harry groaned and stood up. "An early night for us I think, little one. I have an all morning meeting with the Weasley's tomorrow."

18-18-18

When Harry left Malfoy Manor at nine the next morning, he decided to detour into the muggle world for some coffee and doughnuts. He didn't normally drink much coffee, but decided that today he would make the exception. He had already been up for three hours looking over the Potter Estate. Despite the fact that he had started with the smallest of his Estates, he had barely made a dent in it. There were so many business' he had shares in, buildings he owned, and artefacts in Gringotts attached to the Potter family.

When Harry had gotten enough coffee and doughnuts for all the Weasleys, he apparated to Bill and Percy's flat. He was thankful again that he had gotten his Apparation license the week before, it made travelling a lot easier. He knocked on the door and then let himself in.

"Hello? Anyone home?"

He hadn't been to the house before, Bill had only bought it a few months before when he moved back to London. It had three bedrooms, so he had offered one to Percy who had been living in a horrible cramped apartment.

"Through here, Harry."

Harry followed Bill's voice and found the man in a large lounge area.

"Morning!" Harry greeted him. "I brought coffee and doughnuts."

"Really?" Percy appeared in a doorway. "Enough for everyone? I would kill for a coffee."

"Enough for everyone." Harry agreed. "No homicide required."

"Fantastic." Percy came forward quickly and reached for a cup.

"Wait." Harry grabbed a cup before passing it to him. "That ones yours. Chai Latte with soy milk."

Percy hummed happily around the coffee. "Thank you Harry. You're a god send."

Harry passed a cup to Bill, a Cappuccino, and sat down on an armchair in the corner.

"Is no one else here yet? I thought Charlie was staying with you this week?"

"Yeah, he is, but he went for a coffee run. The twins had to open the shop first, they don't trust Vanity to open it or something."

"Vanity?" Harry looked confusedly between the two brothers.

Percy laughed. "He means Verity. Their shop assistant."

"Ah." Harry pushed off his shoes and curled his feet under him. "And Charlie's getting more coffee? Brilliant, I need all the coffee I can get today."

Percy sighed and leaned against his chair hugging his coffee against him. "I know what you mean. Everything is crazy at the Ministry. Two important Wizengamot elections coming up, seven candidates all together. Most people are running around like headless fowls because there is no Minister and no Chief Warlock to direct them, and the few who aren't are fighting for power. It's a nightmare, and somehow it has fallen on me to organise everything for the elections."

Harry nodded. "I have had a ridiculous amount of meetings in the last week. Trying to organise our candidates for both the positions, as well as plan our attack on the School Board. Oh and Lucius was attacked on Friday, he was hit with the Devorabit industria curse."

"Fuck!" Bill muttered.

"What?" Percy looked between them. "I've never heard of it, what does it do? Is he alright?"

"It drains the victims energy until they're dead." Harry explained. "Thankfully, Severus had the potion the negates the effects. His energy is still drained, but he isn't loosing anymore."

"So he's alright?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, he's fine. Fatigued but fine."

"I'm glad. It explains why he didn't submit his name for the Chief Warlock position. So who is your candidate? I know you have Nobleman Greengrass running, but there is no way you are expecting him to win."

Harry laughed and shook his head. "You're right. Kirke is my guy. Greengrass is just running to ensure that Dumbledore doesn't suspect anything."

"Kirke? Kirke's yours? But he's Neutral, he's as Grey as they come." Percy looked gobsmacked.

"Well he used to be." Harry smirked. "To be honest he still is Neutral most of the time. But most of Tom and my plans are more Neutral than anything. We want a balance, and so does Kirke. So we're working together."

"And whose your Minister candidate? I've been going over them and I can't figure out which one is yours. There is no way you are backing Umbridge, Kingsley is firmly Dumbledore's man, and Scrimgeour is as anti Dark as you can get. The only person that is even remotely Dark is Rosier, but everyone knows that he won't win."

Harry looked over at Bill who was eating one of the doughnuts and appeared bored of the conversation.

"Any guesses, Bill?"

"It's Kingsley." Bill said around the doughnut.

"What?" Percy sat up quickly, almost spilling his coffee. "But Kingsley is Light, really Light."

"Except for the fact that he's black." The twins chorused from the doorway, this time Percy did spill his coffee.

"Bugger, coffee stains are horrible to get out of this shirt."

Bill sighed and leaned over to cast a cleaning charm on the shirt. "You really should learn how to do your own cleaning charms, Perce."

"Is there coffee for us?" Fred said eyeing up the cups.

"Yeap. One Cinnamon Spice Mocha and one White Chocolate Mocha. Sniff out which one is which. There's also a plain black coffee there for Charlie."

"You guys take your coffee different?" Percy stared at the twins curiously. "Is that a new thing? Because I remember that at home you had the same favourite foods."

"Well," Fred chuckled. "That was mostly just to piss Mum off."

"It also came in handy when we were pretending to be one another."

"If there was no obvious difference between the two of us..."

"Then no one would figure it out." George finished off triumphantly grabbing his coffee having figured out which was his.

"You drink such girly coffees." Bill groused. "Cinnamon and White chocolate? How do you even look the waitress in the eye when you order?"

Harry laughed at the twins put out expressions.

"It's not girly!" George defended.

"It's sophisticated!" Fred said taking a gulp of his coffee. "Besides it tastes great!"

Percy turned back to Harry. "Kingsley? Really? How the hell did you manage that?"

Fred looked confused. "What about Kingsley?"

Bill sighed and grabbed another doughnut. "They're talking all political. Apparently Kingsley is Harry's man in the run for Minister."

"But he's Dumbledore's man!" George spluttered. "We were at the meeting when Dumbledore announced that Kings was the Order's candidate for the office."

"Exactly!" Harry grinned. "Dumbledore feels confident that Kingsley is his man, so Kingsley will have all of Dumbledore's faction's votes and all of mine and Tom's faction's votes. He's a sure in."

"So he's not really Dumbledore's man?" Fred frowned.

"Nope." Harry smirked. "Not even remotely."

Percy turned to Bill. "How did you know? You don't even like politics!"

Bill finished the last piece of his third doughnut. "Kingsley and I are drinking buddies occasionally. Last year we were both starting to question Dumbledore, and so we would go out a drink to talk about it. It was around that time that Harry came to me with an alternative to following Dumbledore, along with a hell of a lot of evidence of his manipulations. So I introduced him to Kingsley."

"Merlin." Percy looked at Harry, slightly starstruck. "You're amazing! What about Kirke? How did you get him on your side."

Bill groaned and grabbed a fourth doughnut. "Where the hell is Charlie? It's to early to talk about politics."

"It's nine thirty in the morning." Percy said defensively.

"It's _always _to early..."

"To talk about politics."

Percy rolled his eyes at his brothers before turning back to Harry. "So? Kirke?"

"I'm friends with his son, Andrew."

"Floppy?" Fred looked up from his doughnut. "I didn't know you were friends with him?"

"Yeah." Harry rolled his eyes at the nickname. "I made friends with Andrew, he introduced me to his Father at the Triwizard Tournament, we talked."

"Floppy?" Bill looked desperate for a change in subject. "How'd he get that nickname?"

The twins grinned at one another. "Well, you see, this one time we were in the changing room..."

"Coffee!" Charlie's voice rumbled through the house. "I bring coffee!"

"Oh thank Merlin!" Percy sighed. "I really didn't want to hear the end of that story."


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading.

19-19-19

When Charlie had handed out the coffee he had brought, and gulped down the coffee Harry had bought, they all stared at one another for minute.

"So," Harry started. "Can someone bring me up to speed?"

Charlie huffed. "What have you lot been doing while I was getting coffee?"

"They were talking politics." Bill grumbled.

"Really?" Charlie leaned forward. "What about politics?"

Bill groaned and kicked him. "Don't tease! You know you're just as uninterested as I am."

Charlie grinned. "True that." He kicked his legs onto the small table in the middle of the room.

"Seriously, Charlie?" Percy groused. "Are you incapable of sitting without having your feet on furniture?"

Charlie just grinned wider and winked at his brother.

"Alright." Bill shushed everyone. "Harry, we've decided that we want to talk to Dad about it all. Hear his side of the story, let him know we support him if he wants a divorce, talk about options whatever."

George snorted. "Well I for one want to encourage him to divorce Mum."

Bill glared at him.

"What? It's not like we aren't all thinking it."

Harry finished the last of the coffee and grabbed one of the remaining doughnuts. "What about Ron and Ginny?"

"Yeah." Charlie rubbed a hand over his face. "That's the hard part isn't it. All of us would support Dad one hundred percent if he divorced Mum, and we're all overage so she can't do anything. But Ginny is still underage, and both her and Ron are likely to side with Mum. So do we ignore them, cut all ties and all that? Or do we fight for them? Or do we leave things as they are so there isn't a divide in the family?"

"There's already a divide in the family!" Fred said. "We all know it, we just don't want to admit it."

"Realistically the fact that we are all here, Harry included, and they aren't says something." George continued.

"But they're our siblings!" Charlie argued. "We just can't just give up on them."

"Why not!" George exclaimed, slamming his coffee cup down on the table. "You have no idea what they're like, Charlie. You've barely spoken to them in four years. They're different now than when they were kids."

"They still_ are_ kids."

"No they're not. Charlie, Ron is the same age as Harry. Older in fact. And Ginny is almost sixteen. Admittedly they aren't adults yet, but they're not kids either."

Bill sighed. "Charlie, George, this is an old argument. Why don't you just ask Harry his opinion like you planned to."

Harry sat up in shock. "My opinion?"

"Yeah." Charlie rubbed his face again. "We figured that you know them best, you've spend almost everyday with them for the last four, five years. Well that and you have the awesomest spy network. What do you think about Ron and Ginny?"

"As in personally?"

"Yeah." George nodded. "What do you know about them? How do you think they will react? What are they like?"

Charlie took up the questions. "Are they good people? How mature are they? What exactly happened between you guys?"

Harry winced. "Are you sure? Because chances are most of what I have to say, you won't want to hear."

Charlie grimaced and leaned back in his chair before standing up. "Yeah I'm sure. Just give me a minute to find the firewhisky. I suspect I'll need it today."

Bill watched as his brother left the room. "That's probably a good idea, and I have enough sobering potion for everyone if we need it. How bad is it Harry?"

"Bad. What's the plan for the day? You asked me to leave the whole day free."

"Dad's coming after lunch." Percy said. "We're finalising our positions this morning, and then we're talking to him this afternoon."

"And you're sure you want me there? I'm not one of his kids." Harry searched their faces.

"Maybe not Hart..."

"But you are one of our brothers."

Bill and Percy both nodded their agreement. "Besides you have the most information and are great at this kind of talk. You will be a much needed asset."

Harry nodded his agreement as Charlie came back with a bottle and glasses.

"Who wants some?"

Everyone did so Charlie set to pouring out six glasses. When he had finished, knocked back his glass before refilling it.

"Alright then. Harry, shoot."

Harry took a gulp of his drink. "Alright. So as you all know I met my first Weasley on September the first, nineteen ninety one. I had no idea where platform nine and three quarters was, and as I was looking for it I heard a woman talking about it really loudly. It was your mother."

Charlie frowned. "But we never went the muggle entrance, we always Flooed."

"Yeah, well." Harry sighed again and closed his eyes for a minute. "Your Mum helped me onto the platform and then Fred and George helped me with my trunk. On the train, Ron asked whether he could sit next to me and I agreed. We became friends.

"To be honest he was a bit of a dick even back then. He picked a fight with Draco and mocked Hermione, but he was my first friend. We were great friends for two years. Every now and again I would think something was off, he would know something I hadn't told him, and he and Hermione were always distracting me from studying. He kept pushing me to break the rules and stuff, but I didn't really mind that much.

"In Second Year Hermione was petrified by the basilisk and suddenly I had a lot of time to study and my grades went up heaps. Then I overheard Ron talking to Hermione's petrified body in the hospital wing and found out that they had been spying on me for Dumbledore."

"Are you sure?" Charlie poured himself a third glass. "I mean are you absolutely sure?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry, but I am. After that I poked around a little. I found out that your Mum had been told to meet me at the train station by Dumbledore. The plan was to ensure that I made friends with a Light family under Dumbledore's control, and to ensure that I ended up in Gryffindor. It worked brilliantly. Ron and Hermione, and later Ginny, were all ordered to befriend me. They were told to ensure that I didn't make any friends besides them, to make sure I didn't study or learn anything besides the basics, and to report all my actions Dumbledore."

"But why?" Fred burst out. "I've never understood why they would do that? What's in it for them?"

Harry laughed bitterly. "You mean besides the fame of being known as the friend of The-Boy-Who-Lived? I think Dumbledore has been paying them as well, or maybe he has just promised them their dream jobs when they leave Hogwarts – I don't know."

Bill sighed and stretched out in his chair. "Anything else?"

"Ron is cruel. He often bullies the younger students, and if he thinks I'm not listening he can be horridly vulgar. He despises me, and thinks that your Father is weak and pathetic. He's not exactly fond of you guys either."

Harry looked at the Weasley brothers with sympathy. "I'm sorry."

Charlie grimaced. "It's fine. We asked. What about Ginny?"

"Ah, Ginny." Harry reached for the firewhisky and poured himself more. "She keeps trying to slip me love potions. Under Dumbledore's orders of course. Your Mum sends her the potion and she puts it in my food. Apparently Dumbledore promised that I would marry her. She's not much better than Ron really. She's rude, gold digging and uh, a bit promiscuous."

Fred snorted. "What Harry means to say is that she's the Hogwarts slut."

"Slept with most of the school she has." George agreed.

Harry winced at the horror on the three older brother's faces. "That's a bit of an exaggeration."

George stared at him flatly. "Harry, how many people do you _know _she's slept with?"

"Be honest!" Fred commanded. "Don't spare our feelings."

"Uh, seventeen." Harry leaned against his chair tiredly. He wanted more coffee.

"Seventeen?" Percy looked aghast. "She's not even sixteen yet! How can she possibly have fornicated with that many people?"

"Fornicated?" Charlie laughed. "Really, Perce? Why not just say fucked like the rest of the world?"

Percy glared at him before turning back to Harry. "Are you sure? I mean she couldn't possibly have slept with that many people, could she?"

Charlie snorted. "Prude."

"I'm sorry." Harry said mournfully. "I really wish you hadn't asked me all this. I hate being the one to spoil your image of your younger siblings for you."

"It's fine. Harry." Bill looked exhausted. "At least she hasn't gotten pregnant."

Harry grimaced.

"Harry," George groaned and leaned forward urgently. "Please tell me that what I'm thinking is wrong."

"I'm sorry!" Harry officially hated this conversation.

"What?" Percy looked lost. "What are you thinking?"

"Harry?" George prompted.

"Ginny has gotten pregnant." Harry admitted. "Twice, she had the child aborted each time."

Charlie slammed his glass onto the table and stood up. "She can't have!" He started pacing. "Our little Ginny wouldn't do that! It's a crime. No witch ever aborts a pregnancy, it's despicable to even consider it in our world. How would she even know how?"

Harry watched sadly as all the brothers seemed to deflate in sadness. "I'm sorry."

Bill turned towards Harry. "How did she know how to do it?"

"Your Mum, and Ron helped a bit too."

"Fuck!" Charlie through himself back into his chair. "Well that answers that question, doesn't it. Ron and Ginny are completely changed and aren't worth fighting for."

The other brothers all nodded sadly.

"You realise we have to tell Dad this." Percy said. "He needs to know."

This time it was both Bill and Charlie who swore. "Fuck!"

Two hours later all six of the men were still sitting around the lounge, but they had converted it to look like a official meeting room. There was a table in the middle of the room with seven chairs around it.

"So," Percy started. "Can we go over the plan again before Dad gets here?"

Charlie groaned. "Oh for Merlin's sake, Perce. It's not that complicated!"

Harry grinned at them. He loved the Weasleys. He loved knowing that he was one of them, and hearing their affection for each other – and him - in the subtext of all their conversations.

"Fine." Bill leaned back in his chair. "We are going to first of all convince Dad that You-Know-Who, and by extension Harry, isn't the epitome of all evil."

"I still say that it won't be too hard to do." Harry put in. "Your Dad's more Grey than he is Light."

"Right." Bill continued neutrally. "And when we've done that, we will bring up how Mum, Ginny and Ron were spying on you, and the other stuff. And then we will show him the parchment Harry found and ask him for his side of the story."

"Alright." Percy nodded seriously. "I've got it."

"Are you sure?" Charlie asked. "I mean it's only been explained six times, we could go over it again if you need us to?"

"Arse!" Percy glared at him.

"Are all the bets in?" Fred asked.

"You're betting on the meeting?" Percy asked looking affronted.

"Course we are, Perce..."

"When have you known us not to bet on anything?"

Percy sighed and rolled his eyes. "When did this happen?"

"When you were getting lunch."

"You want in?"

"Fine. What are the current bets?"

The twins grinned. "Well Harry has bet ten galleons that Dad won't take much convincing to accept You-Know-Who, the rest of us have bet against him."

"Alright." Percy shot Harry an apologetic look. "Sorry Harry, I'm with the others on this one."

"It's fine Perce, just means more galleons for me."

"I don't know why you're so confident Harry," Charlie put in. "We did grow up with the man."

Harry just smirked.

"Anything else?"

"Well Charlie, George and Harry have all bet that Dad will disown Ginny today, me and Billy Goat Gruff over there disagree."

"I'm with you and Bill."

"Wonderful." Fred was carefully recording everything on a piece of parchment. "Then me, George and Harry all think that Dad will agree to divorce Mum today, Bill thinks Dad will want to think about it."

"I'm with Bill."

"We tried to start a bet about whether Charlie would end up with a glass of alcohol in his hand, but no one would bet against it – not even Charlie."

Percy laughed as the doorbell rung. Bill stood up and went to answer it.

"Shit!" Percy swore suddenly, shocking everyone. "I forgot that Dad wasn't told about my faked betrayal of the family. He hates me."

"He doesn't hate you, Perce." Charlie said. "And we'll explain that first thing."

Percy nodded but still looked worried.

"Through here, Dad." Bill's voice could be heard from the hallway. He came through the door closely followed by Mr. Weasley who stopped in the doorway and stared at them.

"Percy?"

Percy nodded. "Hey Dad."

"And Charlie! I didn't even know you were in the country." Mr. Weasley looked around the table. "Fred, George and...Harry?! Aren't you supposed to be at the Dursley's?"

Harry shrugged weakly and smiled. "Hey, Mr. Weasley."

Mr. Weasley turned back to Bill. "I don't understand."

Bill sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Just have a seat, Dad. We'll explain it all to you."

Mr. Weasley looked around the room again, before taking the empty seat between Charlie and Fred.

"Ok, Dad." Bill started once he had taken his seat. "You know I asked you to come because I had some important stuff to talk to you about."

"Yes." Mr. Weasley nodded, still looking confused. "But you didn't mention that four of your brothers would be here? Or that Harry would be here? Why aren't your other siblings here as well? Why is Harry here but not them?"

Charlie sighed and ran a hand over his face. "It's complicated Dad, and we'll explain it all, but we need you to be patient and bear with us."

"Alright, I can do that. Can I have a drink?"

"Absolutely." Charlie stood up quickly. "Firewhisky anyone?"

Mr. Weasley looked confused when the room was suddenly filled with laughter. "Uh, I'd actually prefer a cup of tea if that's alright Charlie."

"Sure Dad." Charlie nodded and then left to make drinks.

The room was filled with awkward silence for a few minutes before Percy took a deep breath and spoke.

"I'm really sorry, Dad. For all the things I said, and for abandoning the family."

Mr. Weasley smiled weakly. "Thank you, Percy. We've missed you. It's good to see you again. Are you well?"

"Yes, I am. I'm really happy." Percy relaxed slightly. "I'm really enjoying my job, and I've been seeing Audrey Marchbanks."

"How's that going for you, Perce?" Charlie asked as he came back holding a cup of tea and a new bottle of firewhisky. "Are you seeing her properly? Or do you need glasses?"

Percy glared at his brother.

"That sounds very nice, Percy." Mr. Weasley was looking a little out of his depth. "Is she related to Madam Marchbanks?"

"Yes. She's Audrey's Great-grandmother."

"Oh, good family that one." Arthur said accepting the cup of tea from Charlie. "Alright boys. What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well there are actually three things." Bill started. "Uh, I'm not sure how to start."

Charlie sighed and poured himself a glass of firewhisky. "We've joined You-Know-Who, Dad."

"Charlie!" Bill and Percy both exclaimed at the same time.

Mr. Weasley sat back in his chair in shock. "What all six of you?"

"It's a bit more complicated..."

"Than that Dad. Ignore Charlie..."

"He's already a bit drunk." Fred glared at his brother.

"I'm not drunk!" Charlie denied. "I just thought it would be easier if we dived into it."

"Uh, I-I think you should probably explain this to me boys."

"Well," Bill started. "Last year, I started questioning whether Dumbledore was as perfect as we all thought he was. I discussed it with Charlie, and then Percy and eventually the twins and found out that they were all having the same doubts. Then Harry owled me asking to meet. I was confused, because I barely knew him, but when we met he told me that Fred and George had told him of my doubts.

"Then he proceeded to show me a shit load, sorry Dad, of evidence that didn't exactly paint Dumbledore in a good light."

"Really?" Mr. Weasley looked speculatively at Harry. "What sort of evidence?"

Bill gestured for Harry to explain.

"Well, I actually brought some with me today, in case you wanted to see it. Do you?"

Mr. Weasley nodded, and Harry pulled a shrunken pensive out of his bag before putting it on the table and enlarging it.

"Can we all go in?" Fred requested. "I've been wanting to get a second look at these."

"Sure." Harry put his wand in the Pensive and ensured that the memories were all in the correct order. "There are to many of us to use it the traditional way, I'll have to project it."

"You can do that?" Percy leaned forward interested.

"Yeah." Harry waved his wand and images appeared above the Pensive and grew larger.

Everyone leaned back in their chairs to watch the image.

"Is that Peter Pettigrew?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"Yes, and Dumbledore. The date is the twenty fifth of October, nineteen eighty one, six days before my parents died."

The Dumbledore in the image was sitting at his desk in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts, Pettigrew was pacing in front of him looking upset.

"I don't feel comfortable doing this without talking to them first, Headmaster. I need to make sure that they are completely alright with the plan. What if something goes wrong? They could be hurt. Harry could be hurt!"

"I've already told you, my boy, it was their idea. This is why they made you their secret keeper."

Pettigrew stopped pacing and looked at Dumbledore imploringly. "But why didn't they tell me the plan?"

"It's not safe Peter. Anyone could overhear and tell Voldemort. This is the only safe location to talk, and Lily and James are supposed to be in hiding."

"They're completely sure?"

"Of course, dear boy." Dumbledore smiled cheerfully. "I wouldn't be asking you to do this if they weren't totally alright with it, or if I wasn't entirely convinced that the plan will work."

"It just sounds crazy!" Pettigrew exclaimed. "They want me to tell the Dark Lord where they're living? I thought the whole idea of having their house under the Fidelius Charm was that he wouldn't find them."

"That's what we want Voldemort to think, Peter." Dumbledore explained gently. "It's a trap."

Pettigrew sat heavily in one of the chairs opposite Dumbledore. "And you're sure it will work? They're my best friends Headmaster. I can't loose them. And if something happens, if anything goes wrong, Siri and Remus will never forgive me."

"Nothing will go wrong Peter. The entire Order will be hiding in the house waiting for him, and little Harry won't even there."

"Very well, Headmaster." Pettigrew said heavily. "I will do as you ask."

The image disappeared and Harry looked across the table at Mr. Weasley. "There are more if you want to see them."

"No, no. I think that's all I need to see." Mr. Weasley was pale. "I think I'd like some of that firewhisky now please, Charlie."

Harry shrunk down the Pensive again but left it on the table.

Mr. Weasley looked at him. "I-I don't know what to say. Are you sure that it's real?"

Harry sighed and held his glass out for Charlie to pour in some firewhisky.

"Yes, unfortunately. I got the memory from Pettigrew himself in third year."

"But what about all the people he killed?" Mr. Weasley took a large gulp of firewhisky. "And he brought back You-Know-Who."

"Dumbledore found him before Sirius did and put him under the Imperius curse. He's been under the curse all this time and his mind has been destroyed because of prolonged exposure to it. If I was to remove the curse from him now he would be in vegetative state."

Mr. Weasley stared at Harry sorrowfully. "And you have more evidence?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I have evidence that Dumbledore sent me to live with the Dursleys ignoring my parent's will; that he knew the Dursleys were abusive and still left me there; I have evidence of him trying to demolish the influence of the Wizarding Nobility, particularly the Dukes and Lords; that he knew Ginny was being possessed by Tom; that he knew that Barty Crouch jnr. was impersonating Moody; and that he purposefully sent Sirius to Azkaban with no trial."

"Alright." Mr. Weasley gulped down the rest of his whiskey and passed his glass back to Charlie for more. "So you have established that Dumbledore is bad, that doesn't explain why you boys have joined You-Know-Who."

Fred and George grinned. "Well it's not so much that we've joined You-Know-Who..."

"More that we follow Harry, and Harry has joined You-Know-Who."

"Yeah," Bill agreed, nursing his own glass of firewhisky. "He's probably the best person to explain it."

"Alright. So explain it to..." Mr. Weasley broke of staring at Harry's hands. Following his gaze Harry realised he was staring at his rings and inwardly cursed. He had meant to take them off for the conversation. "I think you should probably explain those too."

Harry sighed. "I went to Gringotts to get some money out, but they called me into one of their private offices and told me that Sirius made me his heir." Harry pulled the Black family ring off his finger and set it on the table. "And apparently the Blacks emancipate their heirs at my age if need be, allowing them to claim the title."

Pulling off the Potter ring as well, Harry continued. "And being emancipated meant that I was able to accept the Potter Lordship."

"And the other two?"

"Uh," Harry scratched his head. "Funny story actually. Apparently the last Duke Peverell died sometime in the last fifteen years and since he had no direct descendants decided that 'The Saviour of the Wizarding World' would be a great person to be the next Duke." Harry put the Peverell ring on the table.

"And when they had me cut my hand I mentioned that the dagger was similar to the Sword of Gryffindor. And apparently only the heir, or Duke, of Gryffindor can wield that sword, so one blood test and suddenly I got that title too."

Mr. Weasley laughed. "You never do things in halves do you Harry?" He paused. "I suppose I should call you 'your grace now'."

"Oh Merlin no, Mr. Weasley. You're practically family, just call me Harry."

"Call me Arthur then."

Harry grinned. "Thanks.

"Moving on." Charlie looked impatiently. "We haven't even finished the first point yet."

"Right." Harry leaned back in his chair and started putting his rings back on. "So I figured out that Dumbledore wasn't all that he was cracked up to be. Then I found like-minded people and formed my own little group you could say. As you know, Tom's mind and mine were connected. Well, about a year ago Tom's mind started becoming increasingly more sane and organised, and then three months ago our connection just vanished. It took me a while to figure out what had happened, but it turns out that when he was my age Tom made a horcrux and then another and then another.

"Problem with horcruxes is that every one makes you crazier, but you don't notice, and he made seven. It wasn't until I destroyed the horcrux in the diary three years ago that he realised anything was wrong. Then a year ago he started reabsorbing all of his horcruxes. Three months ago he reabsorbed the last one, which was in me. So Tom is nothing like the Voldemort the world knows."

Mr. W – Arthur was looking shell shocked. "Alright. I can believe that, I think. So you're joined him as what? A Death Eater?"

Harry laughed. "Oh Merlin no. I'm his equal, we're ruling the Death Eater's together now." When Arthur looked disbelieving Harry laughed again. "Trust me when I tell you that I am much, much more than I appear to be."

"He's not lying Dad." Fred put in. "George and I saw him duelling three wizards at once, two of whom were respected Death Eaters, and he bet them easily."

"More firewhisky." Arthur said pushing his glass towards Charlie. "I, just, this is just so much to take in."

Charlie refilled the glass and pushed it back. "I know Dad, and we're sorry. But it's all really important."

"Alright. So just to recap. Harry is incredibly powerful, Dumbledore is evil, You-Know-Who is good, and you have all joined him?"

Percy laughed. "Yeah pretty much. Now would probably be a good time to tell you that I never meant anything that I said about Harry or our family. It was all an act."

"An act?" Arthur took another gulp of firewhisky.

"Yeah. I'm really sorry. I wanted a job at the Ministry and Harry needed a spy in the Minister's office. So we all," Percy gestured to the men around him. "Came up with a plan to make it work. I'm sorry I didn't trust you, I just couldn't risk you running to Dumbledore with this."

Arthur nodded slowly. "And so you've been in contact with your siblings the entire time?"

"Well the ones in this room, yeah."

"And Harry needed a spy?" Arthur looked at Harry curiously. "Just how many spies do you have? Or better just how many like-minded people are in this little group of you."

"A lot." Fred answered for Harry. "There is virtually nothing that happens without Harry finding out about it."

"So true." Bill muttered. "We need you to remember that, Dad. A lot of the things we still have to tell you are going to be really hard to believe, and we only know about them because of Harry's spy network."

Harry laughed. "You make me sound so MI6ish." The rest of the men stared at him blankly and he sighed. "Sorry muggle reference."

Arthur turned back to Bill. "More hard to believe than everything so far?"

"Yeah." Charlie nodded. "And some of it we only have Harry's word on it. But we all trust him with out lives, and he's willing to be put under a truth spell."

Arthur looked between all his sons. "That's not necessary. You all trust Harry, so I do too."

Harry smiled gratefully. "Thank you. Right the next part is about Ron and Ginny and a little about Mrs. Weasley."

"I guess now is the part where you explain why they aren't here?"

"Yeah." Harry sighed and then told the same story he had told earlier. When he had finished Arthur looked at his sons disbelieving.

"And you believe this? That your mother and younger siblings are spying on him and manipulating him?"

They all nodded sombrely. "Yeah we do Dad, I mean why else would Mum go through the muggle entrance?"

"Dumbledore could have asked her to make sure he found his way?" Arthur argued weakly.

"But why do that for Harry if not for the other muggle raised kids? And why didn't she just tell him Dumbledore sent her?" Fred questioned. "Besides we witnessed some of Ron and Ginny's manipulations while we were still at school. So did Perce."

Arthur sighed sadly and rubbed a hand over his face, Harry realised that Charlie must have copied the gesture from his Father.

"Is there more?"

"Yeah." Harry felt sorry for Arthur, he was already looking defeated. "But I need you to put me under a truth spell for this bit."

"I'll do it." Bill pulled out his wand. "Universalis veritatem."

"I haven't heard of that one." Percy said.

"If Harry says something that isn't true, and not only by his standards but by the universal standards, then he will glow red. Try it out Harry, truth and then false."

Harry thought for a moment. "I am not the size of a first year."

The entire room burst into laughter and when Harry looked down he saw that he was glowing red.

"Bugger!"

"Alright then, how about you try something true this time." Bill said between laughs.

Harry glared at him. "Bill wants to fuck Severus Snape."

The table burst into laughter again, while Bill glared at Harry and Arthur cleared his throat pointedly.

"Uh, sorry, Arthur. Moving on." Harry snickered at Bill's flushed and outraged face before continuing. "Under Dumbledore's orders, Mrs. Weasley has been sending Ginny love potions to put in my food. I've managed to block them all though, thank Merlin."

Arthur sighed sadly as Harry didn't glow. "Is there anything else?"

"Yeah." Charlie gulped back more firewhisky. "The next part is the worst."

"Alright." Arthur sat up straight at looked straight at Harry. "Do it quick."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes Harry." Arthur nodded. "Short and blunt please."

"Um, Ginny has slept with seventeen different men, and has been pregnant twice. She aborted the baby both times with the help of Mrs. Weasley and Ron."

"Fuck!" Arthur stood violently, before sitting down again. "Are you sure? I mean she can't of, can she? She's fifteen, she wouldn't kill a child. And Ron, and Molly..."

All his sons looked at their father sadly as he trailed off. "We're really sorry, Dad." Percy said.

"Really fucking sorry!" Charlie agreed.

"I," Arthur stood up again. "I need a moment. Where's your bathroom?"

"Through that door, second on the left." Percy gestured.

"Fuck!" Charlie swore when Arthur had left the room. "I hate doing this to him, you know?"

"Yeah, we know." The twins agreed together.

Harry sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Do you have the documents for the next part?"

"Yeah." Bill stood up. "I'll just grab them."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, waiting for Bill and Arthur to come back. Bill was first. He put the parchments on the table before sitting down. A few minutes later Arthur returned looking strained. He sat down, and looked at the table before looking at each of the other men.

"I appreciate you boys telling me this. I needed to know." Arthur sighed sadly. "I need to think about this. You said there were three things?"

"Yeah." Bill slid the parchment containing the oath Arthur had made in regards to his marriage across the table.

Arthur unrolled it and looked at it for a moment before looking up again. "How did you boys find this?"

"Harry." Charlie, Percy and the twins all said together.

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Of course. What about this specifically did you want to discuss?"

"Uh, well, firstly we wanna know if it's true. Did Mum really blackmail you into marrying her because of something Uncle Casper did?" Charlie asked.

"You boys are incredibly well informed." Arthur looked pointedly at Harry. "I'm beginning to understand what you said about Harry's spy network. And yes, that is all true."

"Ok. Why haven't you divorced her? We looked at your bonding parchment and there's nothing stopping your from divorcing her."

"Well to start with it was because she still had the blackmail over my head. But by the time it became obsolete Molly was pregnant Ron, and I didn't want to risk her taking you boys. And now, well now I guess I'm so used to being married to her, and I didn't want to loose any of my children." Arthur slumped tiredly in his chair.

"Yeah." Charlie said. "That's kinda the main thing we wanted to talk to you about Dad. We would fully support your decision to divorce her, if you wanted to."

Arthur looked up from the table. "You would?"

Fred and George snorted. "Have you been hearing the things we've been talking about Dad?"

"Mum blackmailed you into marrying her..."

"She spied on and manipulated Hart..."

She helped Ginny abort her kids..."

"Even if you don't divorce her, we never want to see her again."

"That goes for all of us, Dad." Bill said softly. "Most of us have never seen eye to eye with Mum, or even liked her that much. But she was always Mum, you know. This is all too much though. Final straw and all that."

Arthur sighed sadly. "I never wanted you to loose your mother."

"Don't worry about it, Dad." Percy put in. "We are happy to loose her. I mean, don't get me wrong, we have mourned the Mother we thought we knew. But knowing her as we do now, we're really happy to loose her."

"You're right. And if you are all completely sure this is ok with you, I'll file for a divorce today." Arthur smiled slightly. "Wow that feels good to say."

Charlie laughed. "I promise you, Dad. We're fucking sure about this."

Arthur rolled his eyes and chuckled slightly. "That Dragon reserve has been terrible for your manners." He turned to Harry. "I imagine that the Weasley votes will come in handy with your plans."

"Well yes. I mean, that isn't why I'm here, but if you want to help then I would love to use your votes."

Arthur nodded firmly. "Right then. My boys all trust you, so whenever you want my votes just let me know."

Harry grinned sheepishly. "There's a Hogwarts' Board of Governor's meeting tomorrow. Or is that too soon?"

Arthur laughed. "No it's not too soon at all. I will take my place as Lord Weasley the minute I file for divorce. What is it you would like me to do?"

"Oh Merlin." Bill groaned. "More politics. Godric, Harry! Don't you ever stop?"

Harry laughed. "Shush Bill. If you're sure Arthur, I will owl you the list. Though all you need to do is vote along with Flint, Zabini and Parkinson and Lucius."

Arthur swallowed heavily. "Right, voting with the Slytherins and Death Eaters. This will take some getting used to."

"Oh, and don't mention me to Dumbledore, or anyone really. I'm trying to keep a low profile until after the Chief Warlock and Minister votes."

"Alright. Got it. You're on first name basis with Lucius Malfoy?"

Fred and George laughed. "First name basis?"

"He's mated to the man..."

"They live together..."

"Have two sons together..."

"The whole nine yards!"

Arthur looked from his sons to Harry is disbelief. "What?"

Harry blushed. "Ah, didn't I tell you that? Lucius and I recognised one another as our mates at the Department of Ministries, and we have since bonded."

"But you're sixteen." Arthur protested. "And two sons?"

"I'm powerful enough to recognise a soul mate, and then the Goblins did a ritual for me that kinda sped up my inheritance. I'm a Veela, and so is Lucius, so Draco is my son, and we adopted Theodore Nott as well."

Arthur looked shell-shocked. "I don't know what to say. Except maybe, congratulations?"

Harry laughed. "Thanks." He grinned happily and then turned to look down the table. "Hey Charlie. You want a new job?"


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

20-20-20

Teddy smiled at Blaise through his eyelashes as the larger boy pushed him against the wall in the small alcove they had found off Diagon Alley. Blaise gazed at him for a moment before leaning down to kiss him. Though kiss hardly seemed to cover it, ravish was probably more accurate. Teddy moaned into his boyfriend's mouth, parting his lips to allow Blaise entrance. He moaned again as Blaise passionately explored his mouth, before returning the favour. Their tongues battled one another but Blaise won, Blaise always won, and Teddy sighed happily into the kiss. Blaise's hands grabbed onto Teddy's arse and lifted him up and Teddy wrapped his legs around Blaise's waist. Teddy's hands were in Blaise's hair, as he leaned against the wall and allowed Blaise to continue his assault on his mouth.

"Theodore Nott!"

At the sound of Duke Peverell's voice the two broke apart. Blaise gently lowered Teddy to the ground and they both turned so they were facing the furious looking Duke.

Teddy stared at him in horror. "Duke Peverell! I, uh, sir, I-I mean your grace, I..." He trailed off, terrified by the fury he saw in the Duke's eyes. Duke Peverell hadn't hurt him yet, but then Teddy hadn't really angered the Duke before this. He could feel himself begin to tremble as his guardian turned his gaze to Blaise.

"I expected better from you Duke Zabini." His voice was cold and furious. "Making out with _my_ son, in a public Alley, without my approval, is incredibly ill-mannered of you."

"Yes, your grace." Blaise looked pale. He shot Teddy a reassuring smile and then turned back to the Duke, squaring his shoulders. "I, I won't let you hurt him!"

If Teddy hadn't been so terrified he would have snorted disbelievingly. Who was Blaise kidding? What did he think he could do to stop him? Not only was Duke Peverell Teddy's legal guardian, but he was also as powerful as the Dark Lord.

Duke Peverell's eyes softened slightly. "I'm not going to hurt him Blaise. He will most definitely be grounded, and he will lose privileges, Draco too, if I find out he knew about this, but I will never hit or curse Teddy."

Blaise nodded. "May I say goodbye to him?"

"Actually I think it would be best if you came back Malfoy Manor with us. It would appear we have things we need to talk about."

Blaise nodded again before turning to Teddy. He grabbed one of Teddy's hands and leant down to kiss him gently. "I love you."

Teddy nodded and smiled weakly, trying not to let his terror show. "I love you too Blaise."

Duke Peverell sighed loudly, rolling his eyes again. "Come along!" He strode back in the main Alley, heading towards the Apparation Point. Teddy smiled weakly at Blaise again before they quickly followed the Duke.

Teddy stumbled when Duke Peverell let go of his arm after Apparating them to Malfoy Manor. Blaise appeared a moment later and they both quickly followed Duke Peverell through the Manor, and Teddy realised that they were heading towards the room the Duke had turned into his office. He could feel the trembling start again. What would Duke Peverell do to him? His _Cruciatus_ Curse would be so much more powerful than his Father's had been. The last two weeks had been amazing. He hadn't been hit or cursed once. It was the best summer he had ever had and now he had spoiled it. He had disobeyed Duke Peverell and now he was going to be punished. Though at least he wouldn't be hurt until Blaise was gone.

But why was Blaise here? What did they need to talk about? Oh Merlin! Duke Peverell was going to forbid him and Blaise to date. He had known that would happen when he found out, he just wanted more time. Blaise might have been willing to go against his father, but there was no way Blaise would cross Duke Peverell. He felt tears in his eyes and forced them back.

When they arrived at Duke Peverell's office, which looked a lot like the Dark Lord's office, the Duke bypassed the desk and sat in one of the arm chairs, he gestured for Blaise and Teddy to sit opposite him.

"Ruddy!"

A House Elf appeared besides the Duke and bowed lowly.

"Master be calling for Ruddy?"

"Inform Lucius and Draco that they are required in my office immediately."

The Elf nodded quickly and bowed again. "Ruddy will be doing as Master says."

Once the Elf had disappeared, Duke Peverell stood up and walked to a large cabinet. He opened it and Teddy saw that it was filled with bottles. Duke Peverell turned around.

"Would either of you like a drink?"

Teddy looked at Blaise who was looking as shocked as he felt. A drink? Duke Peverell was offering them a drink? Where was the yelling? And the screaming? And the cursing?

"Uh," Blaise stared at the drinks cabinet for moment. "A Butterbeer please, your grace."

"Teddy?" Duke Peverell prompted.

Teddy swallowed heavily. He didn't think he could drink anything, he felt sick with fear, but he didn't want to upset the Duke by refusing.

"The same for me please, your grace."

The Duke nodded and passed them each a bottle before turning back to the cabinet. He put a glass of wine and another Butterbeer on the coffee table, before getting a large firewhisky.

Teddy and Blaise watched silently as the Duke collapsed into an armchair before taking a gulp of firewhisky.

"Merlin! What a day." The Duke groaned quietly, before pinching the bridge of his nose. Then he stood up again and moved to a shelf that had vials of potions on it.

There was knock on the door as the Duke was downing a green potion and then Draco and Lord Malfoy both entered. They looked between the Duke and Teddy and Blaise for moment, then Draco moved to sit next to Teddy and Lord Malfoy moved to kiss the Duke.

"Are you alright, Harry?" Lord Malfoy sniffed the empty potion vial before looking worriedly at the Duke. "You took a headache potion?"

The Duke sighed tiredly. "I'm fine, love. It's just been a hell of a day. Come and sit down, we need to talk."

Teddy felt guilty as he realised that Duke Peverell looked exhausted. They had barely seen him in the last week, except for the times when he was teaching them to duel or helping them with their homework. He had been too busy to come to meals, and now Teddy had broken the rules and the Duke had to deal with it on top of everything else.

Duke Peverell passed Draco the third Butterbeer and Lord Malfoy the wine, before taking another gulp of firewhisky.

"What's going on Père?" Draco looked confused. "Why is Blaise here? What did you need to talk about?"

"My meeting today finished early," Duke Peverell said tiredly. "So I decided to go to Gringotts before coming home." He turned to Teddy. "You now have a personal vault with a thousand galleons in it, Teddy. It is something my parents did for me when I arrived in their family, and I know Lucius did something similar for Draco. We," Duke Peverell reached for Lord Malfoy's hand. "Wanted to do this for you, to welcome you into our family."

Teddy ducked his head, ashamed of the tears in his eyes. Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy were so nice, they had given him so much. And how did he repay them? By breaking the rules and lying to them.

Duke Peverell continued. "As I was on my way home, I came across Teddy and Blaise making out in an alcove off the Alley."

Teddy saw Draco flinch out of the corner of his eye, and saw Lord Malfoy frown. Duke Peverell ignored them though.

"We will get to the punishment for Teddy later, but first," Duke Peverell stared seriously at Blaise. "What are your intentions with Teddy?"

The room was silent. Teddy was in shock, this wasn't how he thought the conversation would go at all.

Duke Peverell sighed tiredly. "Really, Blaise, the question isn't that hard to answer. What are you plans when it comes to Teddy? Is he just a casual fuck? Or do you plan to marry him?"

"Harry!" Lord Malfoy gasped.

"Père!" Draco was looking horrified.

The Duke sighed and closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again. "I'm sorry. It's been a rough day." He glanced apologetically at Teddy, before looking at Blaise again. "Well?"

"I want to marry him." Blaise blurted out suddenly.

"Do you?" The Duke asked evenly. "Then why didn't you ask my permission to court him? I have been Teddy's guardian for two weeks, Blaise, you have had plenty of time to ask me."

"I'm sorry, your grace." Blaise looked repentant. "It's just, I asked Mr. Nott last year. But he refused, and I think he punished Teddy for it when I left. I was so used to it being a secret, and I didn't want Teddy to get hurt."

Duke Peverell sighed sadly. "Alright. I understand that, I do, but you should have asked me. I am nothing like Theodred Nott. Teddy?" Teddy sat up straighter when the Duke's stared at him seriously. "Is this what you want? Do you want to Blaise to court you?"

Teddy could feel the tears in his eyes again and he looked down quickly. This was the part where Duke Peverell told him that he was dating above his station and that it was shameful for someone as wellbred as Blaise to be dating a boy like him.

"Yes, your grace."

When Teddy looked up he saw that Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy seemed to be silently communicating.

"Alright then. You have Lucius' and my blessing."

Teddy froze. What? He stared at Duke Peverell in shock.

"However, you may not bond until Teddy is at least seventeen."

Teddy nodded absently, before turning to Blaise who was looking as though he was in shock as well. Then he looked back to Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy.

"I, I, thank you, your grace, my lord. I don't..."

Blaise grabbed onto his hand. "Yes, thank you!"

Duke Peverell just nodded. "There is still the matter of Teddy lying to us and breaking the rules however."

Teddy nodded acceptingly. He would take any punishment the Duke wanted. He didn't care whether he was whipped with a belt so his back was bloody, or Crucioed until he couldn't stand. He and Blaise had Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy's permission and blessing. They were officially courting. Maybe he would get to spend his future with Blaise after all.

"Teddy." Duke Peverell's voice broke through his joyful thoughts. "Say goodbye to Blaise. You won't be seeing him for two weeks. Draco, if you knew about their relationship the same goes for you."

Teddy sighed, two weeks was ages! He didn't think he and Blaise had spent that long apart in years. At least he would have Draco to spend time with.

20-20-20

A few hours later, Lucius watched his mate collapse tiredly, face first, on their bed. He was tired as well, but that was a constant feeling for him these days. Besides, he had spent the day doing nothing more than reading and he had slept for an hour after lunch, so he wasn't too exhausted.

"Merlin! I'm so tired. It was a hell of a day, Lucius."

Lucius sat on the bed next to Harry and began to rub his shoulders. "What happened? You were meeting the Weasleys, weren't you?"

Harry moaned appreciatively. "Yeah. We spent the morning discussing their plan for talking to their Dad, and then after lunch Arthur came over and we explained everything to him."

"How did it go?"

"Really well actually, but it wasn't a relaxing conversation. We bet on the outcome, and I'm fifty galleons richer."

Lucius laughed softly. "So you bet that it would go well?"

"Well I bet that he wouldn't freak out over the fact that we've allied ourselves with Tom, and they all bet against me. And then I bet that he would agree to divorce his wife on the spot, and he did. But then I lost the bet about Ginny. I thought he would disown her on the spot too, but he wanted to think about it."

Lucius was a little confused. "Why would he disown Ginny?"

Harry sighed and rolled over, pulling Lucius down so his head was on Harry's chest. "She's been pregnant twice now, and she aborted the child both times."

Lucius tried to sit up, but Harry's arms trapped him where he was. "What? But, I."

"Exactly." Harry said. "Hence my hellish day."

Lucius lay on his mate in shock. Abortion? Fuck! It was unthinkable.

"You said that Arthur has agreed to divorce his wife?"

"Yeah. We're all thrilled. And he has offered me his Wizengamot and Board of Governors votes whenever I want them."

"So he will be there tomorrow?"

"Yeah. The man's a saint. I had just spent two hours telling him that I was the reason his sons had joined Tom, destroying his image of Dumbledore, telling him how his daughter has been murdering her children, and he asks me what he can do to help."

"So tomorrow, do I act as normal around him? Or am I friendly?"

"Be friendly, but not too friendly. Dumbledore will know something is up already because of the divorce, and the fact that Arthur will be voting against him. But we don't want to make it seem as though you two are good friends or anything."

"We used to be good friends. At Hogwarts, I mean."

Lucius was pushed upright as Harry sat up and stared at him.

"What?"

"Arthur and I were friends when we were at Hogwarts." Lucius said again.

"But," Lucius almost laughed at how confused Harry looked. "He's older than you isn't he?"

"Yes, four years older. He was the first person I ever..." Lucius stopped suddenly realising who he was talking to. He swore inwardly, all his inhibitions seemed to disappear around Harry.

Harry's eyes twinkled. "Yes? First person you ever...?"

Lucius blushed. "First person I ever gave a blowjob too."

"Really?" Harry laughed. "That's hilarious, and slightly gross, but mostly hilarious. So you were friends despite the fact that he was four years younger than you?"

Lucius nodded, thankful for the change in topic. "Yes. Rodolphus was my only friend in the same year as me. Arthur was four years older, Severus was four years younger, and the Prewett twins were a year older than me."

"Huh." Harry sat quietly for a moment before turning back to Lucius. "So what happened between you and Arthur? Because you certainly weren't friends when you met at the bookstore in my Second Year."

Lucius sighed sadly and started removing his robes to get ready for bed. "It was mixture of things really. When he married Molly he just started ignoring me; and then I joined the Dark Lord and he joined Dumbledore; I ended up having to pretend not to be submissive and it was especially hard to do around him so I ended up being extra cruel to him."

Harry stood up and quickly diverged himself of his clothes as well. "That's sad. Hopefully you can reconnect now. Maybe we should have him over for tea sometime."

Lucius grinned and pulled the bed covers back. "That would be nice. Weren't you planning on having all the Weasley boys over? You could invite him then too."

Harry climbed on the bed and lay down. "Well not all of them, all except Ron. But yeah, that sounds like a good idea."

Lucius crawled onto the bed and moved so he was lying on top of Harry. He kissed him gently and rubbed his newly forming erection against Harry's thigh. They had barely had any sex in almost a week.

Harry chuckled into the kiss before attacking Lucius' mouth with fervour. It was still slightly strange to be nine inches taller than his dominant mate, he had always imagined his mate would be bigger than him.

20-20-20

The missing sex scene can be found on AO3. The link is on my profile page.

20-20-20

Lucius turned his head and grinned at him. "I think that was much needed."

Harry grinned tiredly in reply. "Yeah. I'm sorry I haven't been attentive this week, Lucius."

Lucius shook his head and pulled the covers over them, before moving so his head was resting on Harry's shoulder.

"It's fine. We're both busy wizards. There are going to be weeks we don't see much of each other." He poked Harry's side teasingly. "If you agree to teach at Hogwarts this year we will always see one another at the staff table at least."

Harry wrapped around him and pulled him closer, groaning. "Not you too!"

20-20-20

Arthur Weasley stood nervously outside the Hogwarts gate. The Board of Governor's meeting started in twenty minutes, and it would only take ten to walk to the castle so he had time to spare. He looked down at the Weasley Lordship ring on his left pinky. Today was his first day as Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley. It was a terrifying thought. He had spent almost all of his life, twenty seven years to be exact, trapped in an unhappy marriage, and now he was free. He still couldn't believe that his sons had been the one to suggest the idea of divorce, he had always thought his options were staying with Molly or losing his children. To have his sons support him was a dream come true.

But now he had to walk into a meeting with other nobility. Nobility who didn't know him as Lord Weasley, instead they knew him as Arthur who worked in the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office. To be honest Arthur wasn't even sure he knew himself as Lord Weasley.

"Arthur?"

Arthur spun around and saw Lucius Malfoy standing a few feet away from him.

"Lucius." Arthur returned with a smile. Now that he was free from his marriage maybe he could rekindle his friendship with the younger man. It had been one of the Prewett's conditions once Molly had realised she had been tricked out of a title, he had had to break of all his friendships with Slytherins and nobility.

"Congratulations on regaining your freedom."

"Thank you. I hear congratulations are in order for you also, for your bonding." Arthur watched as a genuine smile spread over Lucius' face.

"Thank you. How are you coping with everything? From what Harry told me you had a lot of information dropped on you yesterday."

Arthur sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yes. A lot. I'm doing alright. Still adjusting."

Lucius inclined his head. "I was sorry to hear about your youngest."

Arthur closed his eyes at the reminder. "Yes, well, I don't think it has quite sunk in yet, to be honest."

Lucius chuckled softly. "That's very understandable." He glanced up at the castle and then back to Arthur. "You ready for this?"

Arthur's laugh sounded strained even to his own ears. "I'm getting there." He gestured at the path. "Shall we walk?"

Lucius inclined his head again and they fell into step beside one another. After a minute of silence Arthur looked across to Lucius.

"I'm sorry, Lucius. For ignoring you all those years ago, for all the things I have said over the years."

Lucius shook his head. "Thank you, but there is really no need to apologise. I forgave you the minute the Dark Lord told me about the blackmail."

Arthur chuckled. "So Harry got the information from you then? He's incredibly well informed for a boy his age."

"Ah." Lucius commented as he gracefully stepped over a pothole in the path. "See that kind of thinking will only get you in trouble and confused. You can't think of Harry as a sixteen, almost seventeen year old boy."

Arthur looked across at the man and almost tripped over a stone. "Why not? That's what he is. He's younger than six of my children."

"Technically yes, but in reality no. He's so much more than that Arthur. He's Duke Peverell, Duke Gryffindor, Lord Black, Lord Potter, and Lord Malfoy. He is the Dark Lord's equal. I have seen them duel for thirty minutes and neither of them land a single curse, I hadn't even heard of half the curses they used."

This time Arthur did stumble over a stone, Lucius grabbed his arm to keep him upright. "Really? The boys said they had seen him duel three wizards, but..."

"Yes, Harry duelled Severus, Rodolphus and Neville Longbottom simultaneously. He wasn't hit once, and he had them all unconscious in ten minutes."

"Rodolphus Lestrange?" Arthur cleared his throat when his voice squeaked. "My sons have met Rodolphus?"

Lucius laughed merrily. "They had dinner with him. He didn't torture Frank and Alice, Arthur, he wasn't even in the room."

Arthur nodded and swallowed heavily. "Alright. So Harry is a good dueller."

Lucius laughed again. "He's extraordinary, you should watch him sometime."

Arthur looked out at the flat lake. "I'll make sure to do that." Merlin he loved this place. It represented the happiest years of his life. A time before Molly Prewett, before a war, before everything got complicated. "So what else is so amazing about Harry?"

"He has more contacts than I do. Than the Dark Lord does. Our, and by that I mean the Dark faction's, candidates for both the Minster position and Chief Warlock position are Harry's men."

Arthur frowned. That didn't make sense. "But Rosier and Greengrass..."

"Are just there to disguise the fact that both Kirke and Shacklebolt are Harry's men."

Arthur stopped. "Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

Lucius stopped as well. "Yeah I know. That was my reaction as well."

Arthur resumed walking, he could see Hagrid's hut. There were no pumpkins growing outside, wrong season probably.

"Anything else I should know about Harry?"

"Well he's a genius. He's been using the Granger girl's notes to study for Ancient Runes, since he isn't officially taking the class, only she didn't write down that students aren't actually expected to memorised the Futhark and Futhorc Runic alphabets. So he has both of them memorised. With the multi-tiered exams the Lycoris Parkinson thinks that he will have his Mastery in Runes when the results come out, and according to Harry that was one of his worst subjects."

Arthur stopped when he and Lucius reached the Stone circle. "So what you're saying is that I shouldn't underestimate him?"

Lucius nodded. "Exactly. So, how do you want to play this? Harry suggested that we should act friendlier than we normally do. Dumbledore is going to know something is up anyway."

Arthur took a deep breath and fiddled with the Weasley ring. "Sounds good, I could use an ally today. It's been a long time since I did anything like this."

Lucius' smile was bright and he started walking towards the entrance of the covered bridge that led into the castle.

"Don't worry about it. Lycoris, Marcus and Blaise have all been informed that you are allied with Harry, but they will be distant towards you. We don't want to make anyone too suspicious. All you have to do is back us up on anything we present. Boot and McLaggen are Harry's men as well."

Arthur followed Lucius through the bridge and into the courtyard before the castle. Blaise Zabini was sitting there but he stood when they entered.

Lucius moved to stand near Blaise. "Blaise, this is Arthur Weasley, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley. Arthur this is Blaise Zabini, Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini."

Arthur bowed slightly. "Duke Zabini."

Zabini inclined his head. "Lord Weasley."

Lucius nodded his head briskly. "Wonderful, lets go."

The three men walked through the corridors until they came to the Boardroom. Zabini entered first, then he turned back to Lucius.

"Huh, I didn't even know this was here."

"The Castle holds many secrets, dear boy." Dumbledore's voice came from inside of the room, and Arthur could see that both Lucius and Zabini had stiffened at the disrespect.

Arthur followed Lucius into the room. He had never really considered the way the Headmaster treated other people, nobility in particular, before. Technically Dumbledore was one of the lowest ranking people in the room, only Diggory, McLaggen, and Boot were of the same rank of him, but he didn't act like it. Instead he was flitting around the room, treating everyone as though he was their superior. Arthur had never been particular about pureblood manners, but now that he had noticed Dumbledore's behaviour, it rankled even his sensibilities.

Arthur moved to sit next to Lucius who was sitting at the Head of table, Parkinson sat next to him, and then Zabini and Flint sat across to them. He watched as the other five Governors all took their seats as well. Dumbledore sat at the foot of the table, flanked by Diggory and Augusta Longbottom, and then Boot and McLaggen sat across from one another. Arthur winced as he noticed the 'us and then' philosophy of the seating arrangements. If he had known about it he would have probably picked a more neutral position.

"Arthur, dear boy." Dumbledore called down the table. "It is good to see you. I was very sorry to hear about your and Molly's divorce. Molly is quite cut up about it."

Arthur bit back a laugh as every Slytherin surrounding him seemed to tense in indignation at Dumbledore's words. He inclined his head and smiled at Dumbledore.

"Thank you."

"Alright." Lucius sat up straighter in his chair and glared at Dumbledore. "I, Lucius Malfoy, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, Head of Hogwarts Board of Governors, do declare the four thousandth and thirty fourth Board of Governor's meeting to be in session."

Arthur quietly listened as Diggory explained the Hogwarts' accounts to the room and then Dumbledore gave a report on the events at Hogwarts over the last few months. When they had finished Lucius leaned forward slightly.

"Does anyone have any thoughts, or requests, for the following year?"

"We need a new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor." Dumbledore announced. "With so much going on in the Ministry at the moment, they have decided not to provide the Professor this year. I'm planning on asking Severus Snape to fulfil the position."

Arthur had to hide a smile as he thought back to the letter Harry had owled him the previous night, Dumbledore had just unknowingly done some of their work for them.

"So we need a new Potions Master then." Diggory announced.

"Not to worry, I am planning on asking Horace Slughorn out of retirement." Dumbledore beamed at them all.

"Slughorn?" Boot asked disbelievingly. "Six students died in potions accidents when he was teaching here."

"Tragic losses each of them." Dumbledore nodded sadly. "But every Potion's Professor looses students, Brian."

"Severus hasn't lost a single student." Lucius growled.

"Maybe not, but only forty percent of his students pass their O.W.L.s." Augusta argued.

Dumbledore beamed. "Slughorn had a near hundred percent pass rate in his years teaching."

Lucius glared. "Are your student's grades more important than their lives now Dumbledore? I move against Slughorn being rehired as Potion's Professor."

"I second that." Boot nodded firmly. "He's a danger to our children."

Dumbledore sighed sadly. "Very well. Call the vote, Lucius."

Lucius did. Flint, Zabini and Parkinson all voted against Slughorn, while Dumbledore, Diggory, McLaggen, and Augusta all voted for his employment. Arthur sighed when everyone turned to him for his vote.

"I'm sorry Headmaster, but my children's lives are more important to me than their grades. I vote against Slughorn being hired."

"Very well. We shall have to advertise for a Potions Master then."

"I'd be happy to do that." Arthur spoke up, surprising even himself.

"Thank you, my boy." Dumbledore beamed.

"We need a new History professor." Blaise stated firmly. "Binns isn't teaching us anything."

"Professor Binns, Blaise." Dumbledore corrected.

"He's dead, Headmaster." Blaise argued. "You have a ghost teaching history, and the most boring ghost in the entire castle at that."

Parkinson sighed and tapped his fingers on the table. "I agree with Duke Zabini, and I hate boring things. I move that a new, living, History Professor be hired."

As the meeting progressed, the Slytherins won victory by victory. A new History Professor would be hired, a new Muggle Studies Professor and Divination Professor as well, there was even going to be a compulsory Latin class introduced. Dumbledore's beaming smile grew dimmer and dimmer as the meeting went on and for moment Arthur found himself feeling sorry for the man, and then he remembered the memory Harry had shown him the day before. This man had lied and manipulated people, he had orchestrated Lily and James' deaths. He didn't deserve sympathy.

"I move that Hagrid be removed from the position of Care of Magical Creatures Professor." Lucius announced suddenly.

Dumbledore frowned. "You have tried this many times, Lucius. Nothing has changed."

"He is unfit to teach our children." Lucius argued. "Every other teacher is required to have a Mastery in their subject, why is Care of Magical Creatures any different?"

"That's a fair point, Headmaster." McLaggen said. "Hagrid didn't even complete his seven years at Hogwarts. I second the motion."

Unsurprisingly the motion was carried. Arthur smiled inwardly, as much as he liked Hagrid, Lucius did have a point; and it felt great being on the winning team.

"Uh, my second eldest son Charles is looking for employment in England actually." Arthur ventured. "He had a Mastery in Magical Creatures, and has been working on a Dragon Reserve in Romania for five years."

Dumbledore beamed at him. "Well, if I can't have Hagrid, Charlie would be an excellent replacement. I move that Charles Weasley be hired as Care of Magical Creature's Professor if he is agreeable to the idea."

"I second that motion." Augusta Longbottom nodded firmly. "He's a good boy, young Charles."

Arthur grinned happily as the motion was carried. All of the Slytherins voted against it, but only after it was clear their votes weren't needed. Dumbledore was beaming happily again, obviously feeling as though he had beaten Lucius on this account. Arthur felt his grin widen, it was surprisingly fun to be secretly working against the old man.


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

21-21-21

Teddy was impatiently pacing the Malfoy Manor Entrance Hall. Blaise was due to arrive via Floo any time now and he hadn't seen him in ten days. He still couldn't believe that Duke Peverell was allowing Blaise to come for dinner four days before the punishment was over. Duke Peverell had invited the Weasleys over for dinner, well six of them anyway, and he had decided make a dinner party out of it. Lord Lestrange and Professor Snape were invited as well as Neville Longbottom.

The Floo flared and Blaise stepped out, Teddy ran toward him and threw himself into his boyfriend's arms.

"I missed you!"

Blaise caught him and held Teddy against him while moving in for a kiss. It was an amazing feeling to be able to kiss Blaise without fear of being caught. To know that their relationship had been approved by his guardian, and that they really did have a future together.

"Teddy." Blaise broke the kiss grinning. "I've missed you too, love."

"Alright." Draco grumbled from behind Teddy. "Just because you don't have to date secretly anymore, doesn't mean that we want to see that."

Teddy let go of Blaise and dropped to the ground. When he turned around he saw that Draco was grinning happily at them.

"Don't look then." Blaise retorted grabbing hold of Teddy's hand. Teddy smiled happily at him, it was so good to see him again.

"Come on then." Draco tapped his foot impatiently. "The Manor is going to be invaded by Weasley's in forty minutes, and Teddy and I want to talk to you."

"Invaded by Weasleys?" Duke Peverell appeared behind Draco looking unimpressed. "Is that any way to speak of guests, Draco?"

Draco spun around quickly and Teddy had to hold in a laugh. It seemed to be a constant battle between Draco and Duke Peverell. Apparently the Weasleys were important to the Duke, but Draco had never known anything except distaste for them. Draco had admitted to Teddy that, after spending time with some of them at the duelling event the Duke had organised, he had realised that they weren't so bad. But he refused to admit that to the Duke, and so had spent the last week moaning about the injustice of having Weasleys over for dinner.

"Père!" Draco quickly recovered from his shock and glared at the shorter man. "You have to stop sneaking up on me. And I think invading is a reasonable way of putting it. There will be five of them! Six if you count Longbottom since he's courting two of them now!"

Duke Peverell rolled his eyes. "Fred and George will be taking the Longbottom name, Draco. So if you want to look at it that way there are only three of them.

Draco huffed. "But they're Weasleys!"

Teddy had to bury his face in Blaise's chest to hide his laughter at Draco's whining.

"Draco." Duke Peverell leaned against the door frame and looked seriously at his son. "Please! These are my best friends, my family. You got along fine with the ones you met three weeks ago, and Arthur is just as nice."

"He is nice. I met him last week." Blaise whispered quietly to Teddy.

"At the Hogwarts' Board Meeting?" Teddy whispered back.

"Yeah. He and Lord Malfoy seemed to be friends."

Teddy hummed in reply as he turned back to Draco and the Duke who were still arguing.

"...so plebeian, Père!"

"Don't make rash judgement, Draconis. You don't know them. I understand that their family is very different from what you are used to, but they are good people. They're _my_ people! And I need to you accept them."

Draco sighed. "I know that, Père. I do. It's just that..."

"That you have despised them for years and it is hard to change the way you think in just a few weeks." Duke Peverell finished for him. He looked tired and Teddy suddenly felt sorry for the wizard. The Duke hadn't had a day off in weeks. There was apparently so much going on with the Ministry, and Hogwarts, and trying to catch the people who hurt Lord Malfoy, that he had barely had any time to rest.

Teddy tugged at Blaise's hand and pulled him over to where the Duke and Draco were arguing. "May we move into the Elladora Parlour, your grace? Draco and I were hoping to speak to Blaise before the other guests arrive."

Duke Peverell sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, go ahead." He started walking away and even his walk looked weary. They could hear him muttering. "Elladora Parlour. Stupidest name for a room, ever!"

Teddy turned towards Draco reproachfully. "Why do you keep winding him up, Dray? Can't you see how tired he is?"

"I know, I didn't mean to. It was just supposed to be joke, I didn't even know he was there. And when it comes to the Weasleys I'm not used to having to be nice about them. They're The Weasleys, you know?"

Teddy rolled his eyes before walking in the direction of the Elladora Parlour. "Yeah I know. But they're not anymore. Besides it was only really Weasel that you had a problem with, and he's not coming."

"Not just Weasel. There's also the Weaselette!" Draco commented as he walked along side Teddy.

"Yeah, but she's not coming either." Teddy pushed the Parlour door open and walked in.

"What the..." Blaise stopped suddenly staring at the room in shock.

Teddy laughed. "I know. It's funny isn't it." He watched Blaise took in the room. It was filled with Unicorns. The walls were covered with pictures of them, there were three statues of the animals, the window was even charmed to show Unicorns playing outside.

"It was my great great grandmother's parlour apparently." Draco commented sitting down and glaring at the Unicorn shaped teapot on the table. "It's even named after her."

Teddy allowed Blaise to pull him down next to him on the couch.

"But why did you bring me to this room. It's an eyesore!"

"Isn't it just." Draco agreed. "But Father and Père have given the room to Teddy to decorate however he wants. It will be his Parlour, everyone in our family has one. Well, Father and Père's are more like offices, but anyway. Teddy and I wanted you to see the room in all it's monstrosity before it's redecorated."

Blaise laughed, and pulled Teddy against his side. "I'm glad I've seen it. I would have never believed you if I hadn't been in here myself. How are you both? I haven't seen you in over a week. He didn't hurt you after I left, did he?"

"No." Draco shook his head. "Not at all. Would you like a drink?"

Both Teddy and Blaise nodded and gave their requests. Once a House Elf had delivered the drinks, Blaise looked seriously at Teddy and then Draco.

"Then what did he do? When he told me I could come today I was scared that he had hurt you badly and then shortened the grounding because he felt guilty."

"He talked about how upset and disappointed both he and Lord Malfoy were that I hadn't trusted them, but that they understood that trusting people was hard for me. He explained all the things that could have gone wrong if I had gotten pregnant without his approval of the courting."

"So he just talked to you?"

Draco snorted slightly. "Well not quite. Teddy isn't allowed to leave the Manor without either Duke Peverell or Lord Malfoy for the rest of the summer, learning the Futhark alphabet is no longer a friendly suggestion and he has to write an essay on the consequences of being in a relationship without his guardians' permission, including four historic examples."

"But I'm allowed to visit right?"

"Yeah. Father made a comment about how you would probably become a permanent fixture in the Manor."

Blaise grinned. "Not too bad then. What about you, Draco?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "I have to learn the Futhark alphabet too. And they took away my House Elf for the first week."

Blaise laughed. "Bet that one hit you hard. How ever did you live without a House Elf? You would have had to wash your hair with your own hands."

Draco glared at his friend. "Shut up. Like I would ever let a House Elf near my hair. Anyway, Blaise, we wanted to ask you about the Board of Governor's meeting. What was it like? How did it go?"

Blaise shifted slightly so Teddy was tucked against his side. "Didn't your Father already tell you?"

"Well, yes. But we want to hear it from your point of view."

"Ok. It was cool. Dumbledore was an arse. He kept calling me 'my boy' or 'dear boy', The man has no respect for our tradition and social structure. It was weird actually, I know he always treats the students like we're below him – and we kind of are. But everyone at the meeting was either at the same rank as him, or higher, but he still treated everyone as though he was their superior. I see why your Father hates him so much.

"Everything went well. The beginning bit was boring, all accounts and reports. Dumbledore barely mentioned the fact that Slytherin won the House cup, arse, but he kept going on and on about how wonderful Gryffindor had done.

"We managed to do everything that Duke Peverell had asked. There have been new classes added to curriculum, half the teachers have been fired, it was awesome! I really felt like I was helping the cause."

"Lucky sod!" Draco sprawled himself out. "What was it like voting for the new Chief Warlock?"

"Pretty boring actually. I just walked into a room, showed Madame Bone's my Zabini ring, tapped the ring against a picture of Lord Kirke, and then left. Did you know whether Duke Peverell voted? Did he find a way to without being seen?"

"Yeah. It was really important for him to. He has sixteen votes, so he could have made a huge difference. I think he got someone to sneak him in early. The Dark Lord didn't though, I think they decided that his five votes weren't worth the trouble of risk."

21-21-21

Harry leant against the back of one of the settees in the Entrance Hall. Rodolphus and Severus had arrived half an hour ago and Lucius had taken them into the Brutus Parlour - the rooms in the Manor had the stupidest names. When the Weasleys had arrived Harry would do the same, but for now he was just taking a moment to relax. He was exhausted, but all his hard work was paying off. Kirke had been sworn in as Chief Warlock a few days before, Dumbledore's people all planned on voting for Kingsley, everything was going as planned with the Hogwarts' Board, Teddy and Draco were happy, Lucius was coping well with the curse, Arthur was adjusting well to being free from his ex-wife, Charlie had handed in his resignation to the Dragon Reserve...

The Floo flared and Harry stood up to welcome his guests.

Fred came through first, then Neville and George. Harry watched them interestedly. It was the first time he had seen the three of them since they had started courting and their interactions had changed a lot. Fred and George seemed a lot more at ease around Neville and they couldn't seem to take their hands off him. Neville watched them fondly, drawing Fred in for a kiss before turning towards Harry.

"Hey, Harry." Neville beamed and then moved forward to greet him. "I haven't seen you in weeks."

Harry allowed himself to be pulled into a hug, first by Neville and then by each of the twins. He grinned happily at them.

"Yeah, sorry bout that. There's been a lot going on."

The twins both snorted. "What he means to say is..."

"He's been working himself to the ground."

"Burning the candle at both ends."

"Trying to solves the world's problems."

Harry glared at them. "Oi. I have not. I've just been a bit busy is all."

"Sure you have, mate." George let go of Neville and threw an arm around Harry's shoulders. "By the way Charlie wanted me to tell you _again _how incredibly sorry he is that he can't come."

"It's fine. He'll have plenty of time to come for dinner when he's finished at the Dragon Reserve. He only has another three weeks right?"

"Four apparently." Fred answered. "It was only supposed to be three, but then one of the the other handlers got hurt and they're short staffed. So Charlie offered to stay on another week to help out without pay – bloody bleedin' heart."

"Not that you wouldn't know it to look at him." George grinned.

When Arthur, Bill, and Percy had all arrived, Harry sent his Patronus to Teddy and Draco to inform them that the remainder of the guests were here, before leading his guests to the Parlour Lucius was in.

"Not a stag anymore then." Bill commented as they watched the ghostly jaguar prowl out of the room.

"How'd you know my Patronus was stag?"

"I can't remember. Could have been in an Order meeting," Bill mused. "Or Fred and George could have told me."

"I presume that the jaguar represents Lucius?" Arthur asked.

"Yeah. By the way," Harry turned towards the twins. "The same rules apply. Absolutely no baiting the Slytherins. Not even Severus."

"You hear that Bill?" Percy asked with a grin on his face. "Professor Snape's here."

Harry smirked. "And they're seated next to each other at dinner too."

"Harry! You can't be trying to set me up with Professor Snape!"

Harry laughed. "Why ever not? I think you'd make a great couple!" He pushed the door to the Brutus Parlour and then made his way to Lucius' side. The others entered after Harry and then came the arduous task, in Harry's opinion anyway, of the formal greetings. The Weasley offspring and Neville bowed to Lucius and Rodolphus, Severus bowed to Arthur, and Harry sat down on one of the couches thanking Merlin that he didn't have to stand on ceremony with any of them.

Lucius sat next to him and Arthur sat in a nearby chair so they could talk. Harry snorted quietly as Percy dragged Bill into a conversation with Severus, and Rodolphus drew the twins, and Neville, into a conversation about using transfiguration for pranking. A few minutes later, Teddy, Draco and Blaise all entered the room and the formal greetings started again.

Sometime later, after dinner, Harry and Lucius sat together on a love seat and watched their friends interact. Bill and Severus seemed to have hit it off, they had spent the majority of dinner in a conversation about potions, wards, and runes, and their conversation was still going. Fred and George were talking to Teddy and Draco, while Blaise and Percy were deep in a conversation about politics, Arthur and Rodolphus were talking as well – but Harry couldn't make out the conversation.

"It's amazing."

Harry turned to Lucius. "What is?"

"Watching them all get along. Each conversation is made up of at least one Slytherin and one Gryffindor. It's so different than what normally happens."

"It is, isn't it? I love it. It's the first step to a better world I think. Everyone learning to get along."

Lucius laid his head on Harry's shoulder and Harry put his arm around his mate. "It looked like you and Arthur were getting along well at dinner."

"We are." Lucius turned his head towards Arthur's direction. "It's great to talk to him again. I hadn't realised how much I missed him."

21-21-21

The following scene has been revised slightly to removed any sex related themes. If you want to read the original version, you can find it on AO3

21-21-21

A few days later Neville grinned as he saw Fred bent over, looking through a box. He was overjoyed that the twins had agreed to let him court them. They were amazing. So intelligent, playful, and sexy. When he had first met them, during his First Year at Hogwarts, they had been terrifying and awe-inspiring third years. Over the years though, his small case of hero worship had developed into something more. Neville wanted to spend the rest of his life with them, for better and worse. And Fred and George had agreed to give him a chance.

He quietly moved so he was behind the older man and then playfully Fred's arse. Fred squeaked and almost tripped over the box as he tried to move away, so Neville grabbed his hips to keep him upright.

"George?"

Neville chuckled softly. "Nope. Guess again."

Fred stood upright and then turned around in Neville's arms.

"Neville! What are you doing here? You said we wouldn't see you today." He beamed happily and leaned in for a kiss.

"Dumbledore called Gran to talk about some 'adult things'." Neville rolled his eyes and stole another kiss. "I don't think they remember that I will be Lord Longbottom in six days. The last thing Gran will be able to do as the Longbottom regent is vote for a new Minister tomorrow."

"Lord Longbottom." Fred threw his arms around the taller man's neck. "I like the sound of that. It makes you sound almighty and powerful. It's hot!"

Neville grinned and pulled Fred's hips closer. "Is that right?" His grin widened as Fred gasped. "Just think, in six days most people will have to bow to me; I will have two votes in the Wizengamot; and...I will be the Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom."

Fred threw his head back. "So hot."

Neville smirked and spun the red haired wizard around, so that his back was pressed against Neville's front.

"Yeah?"

Fred whimpered at the loss of friction. "Hell yeah."

Neville laughed. "Good to know. So...how's your day going?"

Fred groaned and leaned back against Neville. "Seriously? You're a bloody tease!"

"Always." Neville spun Fred around again and gave him a quick kiss before releasing him. Then he looked into the box Fred had been bent over when he came in. "What are you doing? Any thing I can help with?"

Fred glared at him. "Bastard."

Neville just grinned at him.

21-21-21

"Madame Bones!" Harry kissed the severe looking woman's hand as she curtsied slightly. "Thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it."

Madame Bones inclined her head. "Not at all, Duke Peverell. It is the least I can do after all we have discussed." She smiled slightly. "If you would follow me please."

It was only six in the morning, so the Ministry corridors were empty as they walked towards the room that was being used to record the Wizengamot Member's votes.

"How are your plans progressing, your grace?" Bones asked, glancing at him curiously.

"Brilliantly. Everything is perfectly on target." Harry grinned. "Tom commented that if he had known everything would go so smoothly with me around he would have recruited me years ago."

"Even after all the hours we have spend talking it is still so strange to hear you talk about You-Know-Who like that. I still struggle to think of him as anyone other than the man who killed so many people."

"That is understandable, Madame Bones." Harry told her gently as they entered an elevator. "He is incredibly different though. He is no longer the monster he once was, I could arrange for you to met him if you would like?"

They rode the elevator in silence as Bones considered the offer.

"I think I might like that. I went to school with Tom Riddle you know."

Harry turned to look her. "Really? I had no idea. Were you in the same class?"

She shook her head as she exited the elevator. "No he was two years older than me. We were both in Slytherin though, so I knew him a little. I remember that he was one of the nicer upper years, even if he did have a bit of a temper. He would sometimes even be willing to help some of us younger children with our homework. He changed a lot though, when I was in my fourth year I think. We never knew what caused it, and then he disappeared a few years after graduating. I would have never have guessed that he was really You-Know-Who."

She stopped and held her wand against a door, after a moment it swung open. Harry waited for her to enter first.

"I've been told that he is back to how he was before he changed, only an older version." Harry told her. "You remember how I told you that I had adopted Teddy Nott? That was Tom's idea. He found out that Theodred was abusing Teddy and decided to fix it."

Bones gestured for Harry to place his votes. "Is that right? You-Know-Who saving a child, it's rather extraordinary isn't it? And what, dare I ask, happened to Teddy's father?"

Harry moved towards the pictures of the four candidates for minister. "He's safely imprisoned in Tom's dungeons. Teddy asked that he not be hurt." He pushed each of his rings against the picture of Kingsley's face.

Bones laughed. "You must realise how crazy this all sounds. This is the same wizard that has been waging a bloody war against Wizarding England for decades. He has killed close to a hundred people personally, and over a thousand have been killed in his name."

Harry sighed, he had to admit that it did sound slightly insane. If only Tom hadn't made those damn horcruxes.

"True. But he is also the man who used to help you with your homework at Hogwarts. Probably more that man, than the warmongering one, truth be told."

He and Bones walked back towards the elevator in silence.

"So you will arrange for me to meet him?" Bones asked after a minute.

"Happily. Have you given any more thoughts to what I asked of you?"

Bones sighed. "I have. It still sounds insane to me. You're asking me to support pardons for three well known killers."

"Not all of them are killers." Harry commented. "In fact the only actual killer is Tom, and he is hardly the same wizard he was when he _was_ killing people."

Bones snorted delicately. "Yes, well, ignoring the fact that you are proposing to pardon You-Know-Who, both Rookwood and Rodolphus are convicted murderers."

"If you questioned them under Veritaserum they would both deny having ever killed anyone." Harry answered evenly. "I have already told you that."

"Excuse me if I don't take your word for it. I will need to actually question them both personally,_ with Veritaserum,_ before I believe that they are innocent."

Harry smiled slightly. "And if they can prove that they didn't kill anyone, you will support the pardon?"

Bones frowned at him. "I will consider it. Just because they are not necessarily killers, does not mean that they have not committed other crimes.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for the five hundred reviews! You guys are amazing!

22-22-22

Small scene deleted due to NC-17 material. This can be found on AO3.

22-22-22

Lucius crawled up so he was lying next to Harry, with his head rested on Harry's shoulder.

"Happy Birthday, Harry."

"Thank you, love, and thank you for the wake up. It really is an amazing way to start the day."

They lay next to one another in silence, after a few minutes Harry moved to sit up.

"Time to get up, Lucius."

Lucius sat up quickly and held Harry down. "No, you can't!"

Harry could feel his Veela growling. He and Lucius' bond had settled a lot in the last month and his Veela no longer needed to control every part of Lucius' life, but the older man was still his submissive mate.

"No?" He raised his eyebrows challengingly.

Lucius ducked his head submissively, but didn't take his hands off Harry's shoulders. Harry growled. This was not how he wanted to start his morning. It was to early for a power struggle between his and Lucius' Veelas.

"Let me up, little one. Don't make me force you."

"Please, Domine." Lucius peeked deferentially at Harry through his eyelashes. "Draco and I have a birthday morning tradition we wanted to share with you."

Harry sighed and raised a hand to cup Lucius' cheek. "Why didn't you just tell me that, little one? I would love to share in your and Draco's tradition. What do I have to do?"

Lucius beamed at him. "You need to put some pyjamas on. I'll be back in a minute, and you need to be waiting in bed with pyjamas on when I return."

He moved off the bed, and Harry realised that Lucius was wearing grey silk pyjamas that he definitely hadn't been wearing the night before. "You want me to put on some pyjamas? It's morning, Lucius."

Lucius just grinned at him and slipped out the door.

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes to the ceiling. Pyjamas it was. Did he even own any pyjamas?

Five minutes later, Harry was lying in bed, in a pair of Lucius' pyjamas which were way too long for him, and feeling bored. When would Lucius be back? He picked up one of the parchment that held a list of all the properties in the Peverell Estate from his bedside table and began to read. So far he had read through both the Potter Estate and the Black Estate, but the Peverell Estate was significantly bigger. It didn't seem to be as out of order as the Black and Potter Estates had been though, probably due to the fact that the Peverell House had been without a Head of House for half as long as the other Houses. The difference between the three Estates was enormous. The Potter holdings were exclusively Light affiliated businesses, while the Black holdings were all affiliated to the Dark. So far the Peverell Account didn't seem to differentiate between the two.

He looked up from the parchment as the door opened. Lucius entered he room, closely followed by both Draco and Teddy who were wearing pyjamas and dressing gowns. He set the parchment beside his bed, and then rose his eyebrows in surprise as all three climbed onto his bed. Lucius moved to sit beside him, and both of the younger boys sat at the end of the bed.

"Happy Birthday, Père!" Draco grinned.

"Happy Birthday, Duke Peverell." Teddy looked as though he had just woken up.

"Thank you, Draco, Teddy." Harry smiled at them. "So what's the plan? All I know is that I had to stay in bed."

Draco bounced. "It's Father and my birthday tradition. And we thought that, since you are family now, we could do it with you too."

"Guppy!" Lucius called, and Harry turned to stare at the House Elf that arrived. He had no idea what was happening.

"Master Malfoy be calling Guppy, sir?"

"Bring the trays now." Lucius commanded imperiously.

The Elf, Guppy, disappeared, and, as Harry turned towards Lucius to ask what was going on, four trays appeared on the bed.

"It's breakfast in bed, Père!" Draco grinned and bounced again causing one of the trays to wobble dangerously.

Harry smiled and turned to Lucius. "Breakfast in bed? The entire Wizarding World thinks that the Malfoy's are as snooty as they come, if only they knew that you did this every birthday."

Lucius flushed and elbowed him in the side. "Don't be silly and eat your breakfast."

Harry grinned and reached for his tray. The food looked amazing. Bacon, hash browns, eggs, mushrooms and sausages.

"Duke Peverell is right." Teddy said after finishing his first mouthful. "I've been friends with Draco for as long as I can remember, and I would have never imagined you doing anything like this."

"Father always said that because we had to act so boring everywhere else, we should get to let our hair down at home." Draco said, daintily cutting up a sausage.

"Yes." Lucius laughed. "And you frowned at me confusedly and said, 'but Father you never tie your hair up."

Draco pouted as they all laughed. "I was eight! And it's a muggle saying. Where would I have learnt a muggle saying when I was eight?"

The remainder of the breakfast went well. It was like the family dinners they tried to have most nights, only more relaxed – probably due to the fact that they were all in pyjamas. Harry grinned happily as he watched them tease each other. It was so different from his previous birthdays which he had celebrated on his own. He had a real family now, a family to celebrated his birthday with.

When they had all finished breakfast and the trays had been vanished, Draco started bouncing again.

"Presents!"

Teddy elbowed his friend. "Why is it that you are just as excited about presents on other peoples birthdays, as you are your own?"

Draco elbowed him back. "Because they're presents! It doesn't matter who they are for, they're brilliant!"

"Alright!" Lucius interrupted them before their elbowing could turn into a wrestling match. Harry watched as they both turned towards Lucius and pouted. It was moments like this that he felt far too old for his years. He knew he was the same age as Draco and Teddy, but he felt so much older.

"Alright." Lucius repeated. "Who wants to give Harry the first present."

"Me!" Draco bounced again. "And then Teddy's. Our presents sort of go together." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small green and silver wrapped box which he then handed to Harry. "Happy Birthday, Père."

"Thank you." Harry smiled at him. "Slytherin colours?"

"Of course!" Draco defended. "This is a totally Slytherin Household."

"What am I then?" Harry asked with a laugh.

"A Slytherin in denial." Lucius patted his arm sympathetically.

Harry laughed loudly and then turned back to the present. He tore the paper off and then opened the small box under the wrapping. It was a ring. A beautiful black ring with a pearl embedded. He pulled the ring out and looked at it closer.

"This is beautiful, Draco. What sort of metal is it? I've never seen black metal before."

"The Goblins call it Qara." Draco explained. "Open Teddy's now, and then we will explain it properly."

Teddy pulled a present, wrapped identically to Draco's one, and handed it to Harry. "Happy Birthday, Duke Peverell."

Harry grinned at him. "Thanks, Teddy." He tore open the paper and then open the box, taking out a second ring. This one was made of a white metal with an emerald embedded."

"Wow, Teddy." He held it up to light. "It's gorgeous!" He looked towards Draco and Teddy. "You said there was an explanation for them?"

Both boys nodded and leaned forward, Draco was the first to speak. "Well, you remember how you gave both Teddy and I a ring to show that you accepted us into your family? We wanted to do the same for you. The ring I gave you represents me, that's why it has a pearl, and the one Teddy gave you represents him, hence the emerald."

Teddy took up the explanation. "If you put them on the same finger, they fit together." They all watched as Harry put them on. "See? And they make a Ying Yang symbol."

Harry held his hand out. "You're right. They do."

"We wanted the rings to say something about you too, Père." Draco explained. "The Ying Yang, and the black and white metal, both represent you. You're both Slytherin and Gryffindor. Both young and old."

"Both one of our parents, and our schoolmate." Teddy added.

Harry beamed at them. "It's amazing. Thank you!"

"Father's turn." Draco announced cheerfully with another bounce.

Lucius smiled and raised his wand. "Accio Harry's present."

A long thin box flew out of Lucius' wardrobe into his hands. Lucius then passed the box to Harry.

Harry leaned towards Lucius for a kiss. "Thank you, love."

Opening the box, all Harry could do was stare at the object inside it. It was a fencing sword. The most beautiful and intricately decorated foil Harry had ever seen. He carefully lifted it out of the box, paying special attention to the swirling bell-guard.

"Lucius, this is amazing. I have never seen any sword like it." He looked up and saw Lucius smiling at him. "Thank you!" Swooping in for another, longer kiss, Harry inwardly grinned in joy at his amazing family.

22-22-22

A few hours later Harry was leaning against a tree across the road from Dursleys' house on Privet Drive. He pulled the letter Dumbledore had sent him the day before out of his pocket to go over it again.

_Harry,_

_I hope your summer has been enjoyable so far. I will be personally coming to collect you from your relatives' house tomorrow as the blood protections on your house will no longer work when you are seventeen._

_Expect me at twelve. _

_Headmaster Dumbledore._

Harry swore again before folding up the letter and striding across the street towards the house he had spent his childhood in. He knocked on the door and waited impatiently for one of his relatives to answer it.

When Vernon did open the door he glared at Harry and tried to shut it again. Harry glared at him and used his magic to keep the door open.

"Let me in, Vernon. If you want that extra thousand pounds, let me in."

Vernon glared at him again but left the door open and stomped back to the lounge. Harry closed the door behind him and followed the large man. Vernon and Petunia both sneered at him as he entered the room, he presumed Dudley was out bullying small children.

"What are you doing here, boy?" Petunia hissed. "You said we would never have to see you again."

Harry rolled his eyes. "No, I said you would _hopefully_ never have to see me again. Unfortunately for all of us I am here by necessity."

"What do you want?" Vernon growled. "Can't you freakish people just leave us alone?"

"Absolutely." Harry agreed with a grin. "This time I can promise you that, after today, you will never have to see me again. In fact when I leave today I will give you the final thousand pounds and you never even have to think of me again."

Petunia narrowed her eyes. "What do we have to do?"

"Nothing much." Harry replied airily, leaning on the door frame. "Dumbledore, the Headmaster at my school, is coming to pick me up and he needs to think that I've been here all summer. And he can't know about the money." Harry added quickly.

"And why" Vernon stood up and seemed to be attempting to look menacing. "Would we help you?"

Harry rolled his eyes again. His relatives were so irritating. "Because you want the thousand pounds I will give you if you do. Well," Harry paused and smirked at them. "That and the fact that I can do magic whenever I want now, and I will hurt you if you don't do as I ask."

Petunia squeaked and moved behind Vernon's large frame. Harry watched them passively for a moment.

"Well? Do we have an agreement?"

"Fine!" Vernon growled. "But if you so much as perform one freakish trick while you are here I will tell your principal everything! Do you hear me, boy?"

"Wonderful! If you'll excuse me, I need to go place my trunk in the hall way."

Harry walked back into the hallway and took his shrunken school trunk out of his pocket before enlarging it. Vernon followed him into the hallway a minute later and stared at the trunk.

"Where did that come from?" He narrowed his eyes. "You better not have used any of your freakishness!"

Harry sighed long-sufferingly. "Of course not, Uncle Vernon. I got it from outside."

Vernon glared at the trunk and nodded confusedly. "Fine. When is that Dumble freak going to be here?"

"Any moment now. Don't worry. Just a few minutes and I'll be gone for good."

Vernon grumbled and waddled back into the lounge. Harry chose instead to lean against the hallway wall. The less time spent with Vernon and Petunia the better.

A few minutes later the doorbell rang and Harry bounded excitedly towards the door. He needed to act as though he had been stuck with his abusive relatives for weeks and was dying to leave. He threw the door open and grinned at the elderly headmaster.

"Headmaster Dumbledore!"

Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling, in response. "Happy Birthday, Harry. Congratulations on turning seventeen."

"Thank you, sir." Harry bounced slightly. "You didn't say in your letter where you're taking me. Will I be staying with Ron again?" Harry held his breath as he waited for the response. This was the big problem with Dumbledore picking him up. If he was placed at The Burrow, or with any of Dumbledore's other supporters, it would make the next week very complicated. He didn't want to give anything away for another five days, not until the next Hogwarts' Governor's meeting.

Dumbledore sighed sadly. "I'm afraid not, dear boy. Mr. Weasley deserted his family a few weeks ago and, with none of the elder boys living there anymore it, it just isn't safe enough for you there. However, Bill has agreed to have you stay with him."

Harry schooled his expression to disappointment even as he was inwardly grinning like a loon. Good on Bill! This way he could still stay at Malfoy Manor.

"Ok, Headmaster. Ron and Hermione with be able to visit though, won't they?"

Dumbledore shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately not, Harry. Not for the first week anyway. We need to ensure that Bill's house is as secure as it could possibly be."

Harry looked down to hide his smile. It was almost to good to be true. "Alright, Headmaster."

"Are you ready to leave, Harry?" Dumbledore peered over his glasses at him. "We have a stop to make before I take you to Bill's house."

Harry nodded eagerly and grabbed onto his trunk to lug it out the door.

"You can use magic now, you know, Harry. If you shrink your trunk it will be easier to carry."

Harry forced himself to blush and look down sheepishly. "Of course, sir. I forgot." He pulled out his wand and shrunk the trunk, before putting it in his pocket.

"Do you wish to say goodbye to your relatives, Harry?"

"We've already said our goodbyes, sir. Maybe I should just go tell them that I'm leaving."

Dumbledore nodded genially. "Go ahead, dear boy. I will be right here."

Harry turned around rushed into the lounge. "Right I'm off. Have a nice life." He handed Vernon the envelop containing the final thousand pounds and then walked back into the hallway. He stared at the cupboard under the stairs for moment. That part of his life was over. He was no longer the scared child locked under the stairs, he was a strong and powerful wizard now.

"Are you ready, Harry?" Dumbledore asked from near the front door.

Harry grinned at the man. He was a new person. He had left that boy behind. And soon Dumbledore would learn just how different we was from that scared child.

"Yes, sir."

22-22-22

Harry was seething when Dumbledore dropped him off at Bill's house. Dumbledore had knocked on the door, and then only waited a moment after Bill had appeared in the doorway before Apparating away.

"Ello, Harry." Bill grinned at him. "Welcome again to my home."

"Thanks, Bill. I cannot even begin to describe how relieved I was when Dumbledore told me I would be staying with you." Harry followed Bill through to the lounge where Charlie was sitting and collapsed angrily into a chair. "Damn that man!"

Bill and Charlie exchanged confused glances and Bill grabbed a glass and bottle of Firewhiskey off a newly installed drinks shelf.

"Uh, what did Dumbledore do?"

"Did your Dad tell you how the Hogwarts' Governor's meeting went?"

Both men nodded.

"Well during the meeting Dumbledore said that he wanted to employ Horace Slughorn as the new Potions teacher this year, but he was outnumbered. It wasn't even close!"

Harry gratefully accepted the glass of firewhisky and took a large gulp of it.

"Six students died in potions accidents when he was the Potions Professor at Hogwarts! Six! And Dumbledore wanted to hire him back. Anyway, today – before Dumbledore brought me here – he took me to Slughorn's house so I could convince the man to come teach at Hogwarts this year."

Harry finished the glass of firewhisky and held it out for more.

"The bastard! What does he think he's going to do? Just ignore the Board of Governors and hire Slughorn anyway? Oh I can't wait until next Thursday when I can finally fire him!" He slumped back in his chair. "It's my birthday! I wanted to just relax today! Instead I have to talk to my relatives, deal with Dumbledore_ and_ Slughorn."

Bill and Charlie exchanged glances again.

"Anyway." Harry forced himself to calm down. Getting mad wasn't solving anything and he had gotten some very helpful memories off Slughorn. "What are you doing here, Charlie? I thought you had two weeks left to work?"

"I do, but since I offered to help them out that extra week they're letting me come home over the weekends."

"Today isn't a weekend." Harry pointed out.

"No, but I told them that it was my brother's birthday and they gave me the day off."

Harry grinned. "Aw, you say the nicest things."

"Fuck off." Charlie glared.

Bill and Harry laughed.

"So you will be there tonight then?" Harry asked the still glaring man.

"Course I will, Harry. I wouldn't miss your seventeenth birthday. What's the plan for it?"

"I don't really know apart from the fact that everyone has to dress formally. Lucius is organising it, and from what I've heard Malfoy parties tend to be the highlight of people social calendars."

Charlie sighed. "I hate formal wear. It's so stuffy and uncomfortable. Give me jeans and a singlet any day. So it'll be big then?"

Harry grinned but shook his head. "Not too big. The only people that are being invited are ones we know won't blab to Dumbledore. All the civilised Death Eaters will be there, and Tom, all my friends and my allies. Though I think Lucius made me invite the allies simply so he would know who they all are."

"All of them?" Bill asked.

"Well, no. Most of them. There are a few that I need to keep a secret for a bit longer."

"But there will be revealing of allies no one knew about?" Bill asked. "Percy will be thrilled. Ever since he found out about Kingsley he's been trying to figure who else is secretly on your side. Congratulations by the way, on getting Kingsley elected as Minister."

Harry laughed. "Thanks. I'm sure Percy will be satisfied by the guest list." He sat up straight. "So how are we doing this then? Obviously Dumbledore needs to continue thinking that I'm here for the next six days, but I don't think I actually need to stay here."

"No you don't." Bill said stretching his arms above his head. "I doubt Dumbledore will come check on you. And if he does I'll just tell him that you are sick or asleep or something. Worst case scenario he ends up thinking you're rebelling by sneaking into Diagon Alley."

Harry nodded and stood up. "Yeah, that works. I'll see you both tonight ok? I should probably get home to see my family."

"Sure. See you tonight, Harry."

22-22-22

Draco held back a laugh as Percy Weasley gazed at his Père in awe.

"You're allied with the Minister of Bulgaria?"

His Père rolled his eyes and sighed. "Yes, Percy. I'm allied with the Minister of Bulgaria."

"But, but, how? How did that happen?"

Draco and Teddy shared an amused look, though Draco had to admit that Harry's list of allies was impressive. There were three Heads of Department from the Ministry, the Editor of the Daily Prophet, two Foreign Ministers, and five high ranking members of the Bulgarian Wizengamot.

"I'm friends with his son Andrey. Andrey was one of the Durmstrang Students that came to Hogwarts in my fourth year. He introduced me to his Father, and we got along."

Draco watched as his Père shrugged as if it was nothing important.

"We're just friends, Perce."

"Just like you're friends with the New Zealand Minister? How ever did you meet the New Zealand Minister anyway?"

Draco looked towards the fireplace as the Floo flared announcing the arrival of the next guests. Bill Weasley stepped out first. Draco had to admit that he was hot. Especially now, wearing a set of forest green robes. Merlin he loved a wizard in formal robes.

As the next person stepped out of the fireplace, Draco froze. It was his mate. His dominant mate! Draco stared at the stranger. This must be the final Weasley. Charles, or Charlie, or something. He was hot! And big and, oh Merlin his mate was looking at him. Without taking his eyes off his mate who was fast moving in his direction, Draco pulled at his Father's sleeve.

"Father!" Draco hissed quietly.

"What is it, Draco?"

Draco felt as though he should turn and look at his Father but he couldn't take his eyes of his mate.

"Father, that man is my mate."


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

23-23-23

Harry grinned happily when he saw Bill and Charlie arrive through the Floo. Maybe they would be able to save him from the nuisance that was Percy. Percy had taken up position behind Harry so that he could observe the guests arriving. The moment each guest was out of earshot Harry was barraged with questions about how he had meet them.

"Father!" Draco's voice hissed from Harry's left, and Lucius turned to look at their son.

"What is it, Draco?" Lucius asked.

"Father, that man is my mate."

Harry turned quickly to look at Draco, and then to where he was staring. Bill and Charlie? No, it couldn't be Bill, Draco had met him before, Charlie then. The Floo flared again and Harry grinned when he saw Tom stepping out of the fireplace.

"Good evening, Charlie." Harry greeted the man before he could speak to Draco.

Charlie seemed to force his gaze away from Draco and towards Harry.

"Harry. Happy Birthday again and all that. Uh, I'm not sure how to say this but..."

"But my son Draco is your mate." Harry finished for him.

"Really?" Percy asked staring disbelievingly between Harry, Charlie and Draco.

Bill just sighed and rolled his eyes. "Oh the drama. I swear, Harry, before we met you, our family didn't have nearly as many dramatic moments."

Charlie was staring at Draco again, Draco was staring right back. Teddy was looking between his friend and Charlie with a shocked expression on his face. Charlie took a step towards Draco and Lucius started growling.

Harry sighed as Charlie growled back, his eyes growing cold and hard as he stared at at the strange submissive daring to growl at him. Lucius glared at the larger man, and stepped in front of Draco – hiding him from Charlie's sight. Charlie growled louder and stepped towards Lucius.

"Harry?" Tom was observing the growling men in curiosity. "What ever is going on?"

Harry grinned at the man quickly before stepping between Lucius and Charlie and staring down the other dominant.

"Tom. So glad you're here. We have some family business that we need to see to, could you stand here and greet the guests please."

"You want me, the Dark Lord Voldemort, to greet your guests?" Tom stared at him in disbelief.

Harry growled threateningly as Charlie took a step closer. "It's more a need than a want to be honest, Tom. I really have to deal with this."

A quick glance in Tom's direction showed the wizard was rolling his eyes. "Very well. I will welcome your guests. But I take no responsibility for any who run screaming from the manor because of my presence."

Harry shot a thankful smile in Tom's direction, before quickly glaring at Charlie again. "Thank you. Bill, Percy, would you excuse us? This will go smoother if everyone in the room has Creature blood."

"Should I stay as well then, Duke Peverell?" Teddy's voice came from behind Harry.

"Yes that would be best, Teddy. Don't worry, I'm sure Draco will tell you all about it. You can go find Blaise if you would like."

"Yes, your grace."

"Don't worry about us." Percy said. "Bill and I'll go find Professor Snape."

Harry held back a laugh, as he saw Bill elbow his brother out of the corner of his eye.

"Right. Thank you. We'll be back soon."

Harry slowly manoeuvred Draco and Lucius back and through one of the doors leading to a Parlour. Charlie followed them growling furiously but never coming too close. Harry growled back, barely preventing himself from launching an attack on the wizard. He tried to force his Veela further down. Both Lucius and Charlie were acting entirely by their instincts. If he didn't keep control of himself and try and talk Charlie and Lucius down, everything would get out of control.

One they were all in the Parlour he firmly pushed Lucius and Draco onto a couch behind him.

"Sit down, Charlie!"

Charlie only growled in reply, inching further forward towards his mate.

"Charlie! If you don't get control of yourself right now, and sit down, I will force you to." Harry narrowed his eyes and let out his pulse of his magic. He had no doubts that he could beat Charlie in a fight if he had to.

Charlie seemed to get the message. He didn't back away but he did sit down in the armchair he was standing next to.

"Good!" Harry sighed tiredly and turned towards Lucius, not letting Charlie out of his sight. "Be quiet, little one!" He growled as his mate ignored him, continuing to exchange growls with Charlie.

Harry grabbed the back of Lucius' neck and forced him to bare his throat. "Stop it right now, submissive!"

Lucius ignored him until Harry started tightening his hold on his neck. When the grip had become painful, Lucius let out a whimper and lowered his eyes submissively.

Next Harry turned to Draco who had his throat bared in Charlie's direction and his eyes lowered. "Are you alright, Draco?"

"Yes, Père. I don't understand though. I found my mate. Isn't that a good thing? Why is Father upset?"

Harry sat on the edge of the couch between Draco and Lucius, ensuring that he was still closer to Charlie than his family.

"It is a good thing, love. Your Father and Charlie's creatures are just a bit close to the surface at the moment."

Harry turned all of his attention back to Charlie whose growling had petered out to a low rumble.

"Have you calmed down, Charlie?"

Charlie nodded, his eyes on his mate. "Sorry, Harry."

"It's understandable. Our creatures often come out at times like this. I didn't know you had creature blood."

"I, uh," Charlie moved his gaze to Harry. "Yes, I have Draken blood. But I'm the first to have gone through a creature inheritance since my Great Great Aunt."

"And your Draken has chosen Draco as his mate?"

"Yeah." Charlie looked at Draco and then back at Harry. "I...Why won't you let me talk to him, or touch him?"

"Because there are things that need to be discussed first. While I acknowledge that he is your mate, he is also my son."

"I know that Harry." Charlie said vehemently. "I do. But I have spent eight years searching for my mate, and now that I've found him you won't even let me talk to him."

"I'll make this quick, Charlie." Harry promised. "As Draco is your mate you will be taking the Malfoy name, he is the Malfoy Heir. This means that you will be part of the Malfoy Family, of which I am the Head. Do you understand that?"

Charlie's eyes widened. "I hadn't thought of that. You're going to be my Father-in-law." He chuckled before sobering. "I do understand though Harry. I know that you are at the top of the food chain, and I'm ok with that. Fuck, my Draken has seen you as its alpha of sorts for years. You have no idea how humiliating it was to realise that my Draken thought itself weaker than a thirteen year old."

Harry grinned and leant back in his chair, no longer viewing Charlie as a threat. "That must have sucked. I will allow you and Draco to bond this summer, but not until you are back in England full-time."

Charlie was staring at Draco again, but he nodded his head in understanding. "That makes sense."

"Good. And Charlie? If you ever threaten my mate again, I will hurt you. Do you understand?"

Charlie swallowed heavily but nodded. "Yeah, I get it. Can I touch him now?"

"Sure. Go ahead."

Harry watched as Charlie leaped forward to pick Draco up, before sitting back down in his chair with Draco on his lap.

"My mate." Charlie rumbled smelling Draco's hair. "My beautiful mate!"

Draco whined quietly in reply and burrowed his face into Charlie's robes.

Harry turned to Lucius who was watching the exchange quietly. "Are you alright, little one?"

"Yes." Lucius nodded. "I'm sorry about earlier. My Veela took over."

Harry put his arms around Lucius and drew him into a hug. "It's fine. Next time try and obey me before I have to hurt you, ok? I don't like causing you pain."

Lucius put his head on Harry's shoulder tiredly. "I'll try. I can't believe Draco has found his mate. He's only seventeen."

Harry ran his fingers through Lucius' hair. "I know. But Charlie will look after him. He's a good man."

Lucius nodded against Harry's shoulder before sitting up straight. "I suppose we ought to go back to our guests."

Standing Harry pulled Lucius to his feet as well. He looked at Charlie and Draco who were quietly murmuring to one another.

"We can leave them here. Allow them to get to know one another."

23-23-23

Harry finished his farewell conversation with Katerina Savia, the Head of the Bulgarian Auror Department. It was amazing how many of his friends had come today, many of who he had only met face to face once or twice. A lot of his friendships had been formed primarily through correspondence. He looked around the room for Lucius, Draco and Teddy. He found Draco and Teddy sitting together, along with their significant others. Charlie and Blaise hadn't left Draco and Teddy's sides in hours, and didn't look like they was planning on going anywhere soon.

Having assured himself that Draco and Teddy were happy, he searched the room for Lucius. When he saw his mate in one of the corners, he made his way over. Lucius was sitting with a group of his and Harry's friends. He was talking to Arthur and Rodolphus, while nearby Bill and Severus seemed to be having a conversation about potion ingredients found in Egypt.

When Harry approached Arthur stood up from his seat on the settee next to Lucius and moved to a chair nearby. Harry shot him a thankful smile before making himself comfortable next to his mate.

"Hello, Lucius. How are you going over here?"

Lucius leaned tiredly against him. "I'm tired."

Putting an arm around his mate, Harry pulled him closer. "Yeah, it's been a big day hasn't it, love?"

Lucius nodded tiredly against his shoulder.

"Happy Birthday, Harry." Arthur grinned at him. "I haven't got a chance to talk to you yet this evening."

"Yeah sorry about that. There were a lot of people to get around."

"It's fine. I hear that we are going to be co-fathers-in-law." Arthur said with smile "I have to admit that I didn't see that one coming."

Harry laughed. "No, neither did I. It's hard to believe that this is only my seventeenth birthday. I feel old already. Two sons, an almost son-in-law..."

"Hah. Just imagine how old I feel. I have seven children." Arthur pointed out.

"Yeah, but you really are old, Arthur." Harry grinned.

"Well, if we're judging age on the number of children we have, it's no wonder I act so young all the time." Rodolphus put in.

"What's Sev's excuse?" Lucius asked from his position against Harry's shoulder. "He has no children either, but no one accuse him of acting young."

"That's what you know Luce!" Severus broke off his conversation with Bill to join in. "I could have hundreds of children out there that you don't know about."

Lucius laughed. "No, that's Rodol. He's the man-whore here."

"Oi!" Rodolphus protested loudly, getting the intention of a few nearby guests. "I take great offence to that!"

"Notice how he didn't deny it?" Severus smirked in his friend's direction.

Rodolphus pouted as everyone laughed.

"By the way, Harry," Severus started seriously. "Congratulations on all your successes this month. As much as I hate to admit it, you are a very effective wizard when you want to be."

"Thank you, Severus." Harry smiled at the man. It was nice to have one less person who hated him in the world. "I'm really thrilled about it all. Most of it was just good timing. It would have been impossible without Fudge and Dumbledore's unknowing assistance."

"What's next in your plan then?" Rodolphus asked curiously.

Harry smirked. "Well I get to fire Dumbledore on Thursday. So that's kind of my highlight of the month. After the Board Meeting on Thursday, both The Daily Prophet and the Quibbler will be publishing an article portraying me as the good guy. This month is all about Hogwarts. On Thursday we should also receive our exam results, but the Hogwarts letters won't be going out for a week after that. That gives us a week to finalise things like the classes and the uniforms.

"After that I will have around two weeks to complete all the changes at Hogwarts."

"And to write your lesson plans." Rodolphus put in with a teasing smirk.

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes. "And _maybe _prepare to be the new Magical Defence and Muggle Fighting Professor. Tom and I have a deal. If on Thursday I find out that I've effectively graduated from Hogwarts, _and_ I get my Mastery in Defence_, and _the D.A. get higher marks in Defence than average students normally would, then I will be the new Professor. If not, then we will just have to find another wizard."

"Did you hear that, George?" Fred's voice came from behind Harry and both he and George moved to sit in empty chairs around Harry.

"I know, Fred." George grinned at Harry.

"Harry will be our new Defence Professor..."

"Now we're definitely sure we want to go back to Hogwarts this year."

"It isn't definite." Harry said firmly. "Only if..."

"Yeah yeah we heard that." Fred interrupted. "But realistically there is no way..."

"That Tom won't win that bet..."

"You were a brilliant teacher for D.A."

"Best we've ever had..."

"And you're a genius. You were already reading higher level textbooks..."

"Than we were when you were a little Third Year."

"Wait." Arthur broke in. "You boys are going back to school?"

"Yeah." George didn't look too thrilled about the idea.

"It was Neville's idea. Our shop is earning enough money..."

"For us to hire a full time manager..."

"And we don't want to be the family members..."

"Famous for dropping out of school."

"Besides," Fred grinned. "It means that we will get to stay with Neville."

Arthur grinned. "Your shop is really doing that well? That's fantastic! I had no idea the business was such a success." He paused for moment. "Oh, and I'm really proud of you boys for going back to school."

23-23-23

Thursday morning found the Malfoy family seated around their dining table having breakfast. It had been decided by Harry and Lucius, that as their O.W.L results were due to arrive during breakfast, they would eat together.

"So how do you think your O.W.L.s went, Teddy?" Lucius asked whilst spreading cream cheese onto a bagel.

Teddy smiled around his cup of coffee. "Really well. I'm pretty sure I got an Outstanding in Potions, Transfiguration, Care of Magical Creatures, History and Magical Art, and and maybe Exceeds Expectations on all my other subjects."

Draco snorted. "You haven't got a grade lower than Exceeds Expectations in your life."

"And you have?" Teddy returned.

"Uh, yes actually." Draco looked embarrassed. "I only got an Acceptable in Transfiguration in Second Year and in Divination last year."

Harry laughed at them. They thought that was bad? They should have seen his or Ron's results. Admittedly his were bad on purpose, but still.

"What about you Draco?" Lucius asked curiously.

"Well I'll probably scrap through Divination again. Don't even know why I took that class."

"You took it so you could annoy Duke Peverell." Theodore said with a grin.

Harry raised his eyebrows as Draco glared at his friend. "Really? You seriously chose Divination as one of your electives to annoy me?" He laughed. "That's hilarious."

Lucius gave an amused smile. "And your other classes, Draco?"

"Oh I should get an Outstanding on all of the rest, except maybe Care of Magical Creatures, and Runes." Draco answered still glaring at Teddy.

Lucius poured himself another glass of Pomegranate Juice before leaning back in his chair.

"Teddy, Harry and I have been thinking that it is rather impractical for you to still be calling us by our titles. You are part of our family, and we are your parents now. Do you have any ideas on what you could call us?"

Harry watched amused as Teddy looked between him and Lucius in shock. "Really?"

"Yes, Teddy." Harry took over the explanation. "I would also like you to consider whether you would like to be adopted into one of my Houses. As things stand at the moment, Lucius and I have both adopted you but you are still a Nott by House. If you are alright with it, I would like to adopt you into the House of Potter and make you the Heir." He paused when he saw the overwhelmed expression on the boys face. "But it is entirely your decision."

Teddy stared at both Harry and Lucius for a minute before smiling wetly. "Are you sure? Because..."

Harry interrupted him quietly. "I am very sure, Teddy. As I said, you are part of our family now, and I would like to give you this."

Teddy looked at a grinning Draco, and a smiling Lucius before looking back at Harry. "I would love to be adopted into the Potter family, your grace."

Harry beamed at him. "Brilliant! We can talk about the semantics such as whether you keep your name the same later. But now that you are going to be my Heir you really can't keep referring to me and Lucius by our titles. Is there something else that you would feel comfortable calling us?"

"Uh," Teddy looked unsure. "Could I call you Père and Father like Draco does?"

Lucius frowned worriedly. "Are you sure Teddy? I would love to have you call me Father, but I know that is what you used to call your birth father."

Teddy nodded emphatically. "I'm sure. As long as it is alright with you."

Harry grinned. "It's wonderful, Teddy. I would proud to be your Père."

The next few minutes of breakfast was silent, though both Draco and Teddy seemed to be having a silent conversation involving an awful lot of smiling.

"I see the owls!" Draco called excitedly, standing up and moving to open the window.

When each of the Hogwarts students had their Hogwarts letters in their hands they all looked at each other.

"This is it." Draco grinned. "I've been waiting to see these all summer!"

"We all have, Draco." Teddy replied dryly opening his envelope.

"Read them one at a time." Lucius told them. "That way you can all listen to one another's results."

Draco pouted but put his envelope on the table and watched as Teddy opened his letter.

"Read it out loud, Teddy." Harry told the boy when it became obvious that Teddy was silently reading the letter.

Teddy glanced up at him and then back down to the letter. "Uh, Dear Theodore Nott, below are your result for the Ordinary Wizarding Ex..."

"Skip that part." Draco said impatiently.

"Um, Pass grades: Outstanding, Exceeds..."

"You can skip that part too." Harry told him. "We all know what the different grades mean."

"Alright." Teddy said. "Astronomy – Outstanding, Arithmacy - Outstanding, Care of Magical Creatures - Exceeds Expectations, Charms – Outstanding, Defence against the Dark Arts – Exceeds Expectations, History of Magic – Outstanding, Magical Art – Outstanding, Potions – Outstanding, Study of Ancient Runes – Exceeds Expectations, and I got an Outstanding in Transfiguration."

"Wow congratulations!" Harry grinned. "Ten O. ! Good job."

Lucius beamed happily at the boy. "That's amazing Teddy. You got seven Outstandings. That's very impressive."

"Yeah congrats, Teddy." Draco added before turning to Lucius. "Can I read mine now?"

Lucius rolled his eyes but nodded. "Go ahead, Draco."

"Wait." Harry said looking out the window. "There's another owl coming."

The owl flew through the window and landed on Harry's shoulder.

"It's Percy's owl, Hermes." Harry commented as he took the letter of the owls leg, and fed it some berries.

"Can I read my letter now?" Draco asked impatiently.

"Yeah, go ahead. I'll read Percy's letter after the O. ."

Draco tore open his letter. "Arithmacy - Outstanding, Care of Magical Creatures – Exceeds Expectations, Charms – Outstanding, Defence against the Dark Arts – Outstanding, Divination – Acceptable, History of Magic – Outstanding, Potions – Outstanding, Study of Ancient Runes – Exceeds Expectations, and I got an Outstanding in Transfiguration too.

"Oh good. I passed all nine O. , and I was right about my grades." Draco grinned as he looked up from the letter. "You open yours now, Père."

"Good job, Draco." Harry told his son as he opened his envelope. "I'm very proud of both of you!"

"As am I." Lucius added. "You both did excellently."

Harry opened his letter, ignoring the extra papers that fell onto the table, and read it through quickly before looking up at his family.

"You're supposed to read it out loud, Père." Draco told him. "What does it say."

"Well, Astronomy – N.E.W.T level Outstanding, Arithmacy - N.E.W.T level Exceeds Expectations, Care of Magical Creatures, - N.E.W.T level Outstanding, Charms - N.E.W.T level Outstanding, Defence Against the Dark Arts – Mastery, Divination – Acceptable, Herbology - N.E.W.T level Exceeds Expectations, History of Magic - N.E.W.T level Outstanding, Potions - N.E.W.T level Outstanding, Study of Ancient Runes – Mastery, Transfiguration – Mastery.

"Mr. Potter, for the last twenty eight years Hogwarts exams have been multi-tiered. The exam papers have been charmed to add extra parts to the exam if they feel you have mastered the subject above the level being tested. Congratulations, in ten out of your eleven exams you have graded at N.E.W.T. level. Please find enclosed your Hogwarts Diploma and the certificates of your three Masteries."

Harry looked up from the parchment and saw that his family were looking at him in shock. Suddenly Draco began to laugh.

"Three Masteries? And ten N.E. ? And you only got an Acceptable in Divination.?"

Teddy began to laugh as well, Harry grinned and turned to look at Lucius who was still staring at him.

"Are you alright, Lucius?"

"What?" Lucius sat up straight. "I just, three Masteries? That's ridiculous. I knew you were smart, every keeps going on about it, and you come across as intellectual, but three Masteries? You're a prodigy."

Harry rolled his eyes and looked back at the letter for a moment. "I don't even know how I got the Transfiguration Mastery."

"You should read Percy's letter, Harry." Lucius commented. "It could be urgent."

Harry picked up the envelope and began opening it. "If it was urgent he would have Firecalled me."

As Harry read the letter from Percy he glared at the parchment.

_Hey Harry,_

_Congratulations on your exam results. Three Masteries and ten N.E. is amazing. I always said you were a genius. Bill told me about the deal you have going on with You-Know-Who, and so I thought that as I would do you the favour of researching the Defence marks of the kids in your club. Madame Marchbanks was happy to help, the fact that I'm dating her Great-granddaughter probably helped my case – it's how I found out about your results. The members of the D.A. (I got the list from Fred and George) had a hundred percent pass rate, almost all of them passed with an Exceeds Expectations or higher. Madame Marchbanks told me that they haven't had such a successful Defence class in twenty years. _

_Congratulations! I guess this means you will be the new Defence Professor._

_Have a good day firing Dumbledore, I wish I could be there. Make sure to show me a memory later._

_Percy Weasley_

"What is it?" Lucius asked. He looked worried. "Is something wrong?"

"No." Harry said with a long suffering sigh, putting the parchment on the table. "Percy was just happily informing me that the members of the D.A., the club I ran last year, had hundred percent pass rate in Defence. Looks like I'm the new Defence Professor."

Draco and Teddy exchanged excited glances. "Really? That's brilliant!"


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

There will probably be three new chapters this week! A reward chapter for reaching 600 reviews on fanfic, and a reward chapter for reaching 200 comments on AO3. Wow you guys are amazing! Thank you so so much for your reviews and comments

Thanks for reading

24-24-24

Harry grabbed Lucius' hand as they began the walk from the Hogwarts Gate to the castle. It was hard to believe that today was the day that Dumbledore would be fired. Ever since he had discovered the old man's manipulations three years earlier, Harry had been dreaming of this day. Dreaming of the day he would finally have studied and trained long enough to risk making his move against the Headmaster, and that day had finally arrived.

He squeezed Lucius' hand, and then stopped to pull his mate into a kiss.

Lucius laughed softly. "You're in a good mood today."

Harry grinned and resumed walking, Lucius' hand tucked firmly in his own. "Absolutely. Today is the day, Lucius. The day Dumbledore is kicked out of power. The day he realises that he can't control me. The day the Wizarding World figures out that I'm not just a boy hero. I've been looking forward to this day for three years."

"Not to mention, today is the day you found out that at the age of seventeen you have graduated from Hogwarts and achieved three Masteries." Lucius pointed out.

"Gah. Don't remind me!" Harry groaned letting go of Lucius' hand and wrapping his arm around his mate's waist instead. "Three Masteries. How the hell did that happen? I expected the Runes one, and the Defence one makes sense, but I can't figure out how I got the Transfiguration one."

"You did study Transfiguration beyond the course work though, right?"

"Course I did, I studied all my subjects beyond the coursework, well except for Divination. I knew that I would need as much knowledge as I could get to best Dumbledore. Knowledge is power and all that." Harry grinned as he watched the Giant Squid snatch a bird out of the air.

"Oh Merlin!" Lucius groaned teasingly. "I'm bonded to a Ravenclaw."

"How is that worse than being bonded to a Gryffindor? I thought that you Slytherins preferred Ravenclaws over the other two houses?"

"Well yes," Lucius admitted with a smirk. "But most of the time I repress the memory that you are actually a Gryffindor and pretend that you are Slytherin."

Harry laughed and stopped again for another kiss.

"So, did you study Transfiguration more than the other subjects." Lucius asked when they resumed walking again.

Harry shrugged. "I suppose I did. It's one of the more helpful subjects when duelling. Most of them are completely useless in a duel. When would I use Astronomy or Arithmacy in a duel? But Transfiguration is brilliant, whether you're conjuring a shield, or lots of snakes to attack your opponent."

Lucius hummed. "That is true. What did you have to do in your Transfiguration exam?"

"Well the basics, first I had to write about the Switching spell, and perform the Vanishing spell. But then I had to conjure a Jack Russell puppy, and I was asked to write an essay on the theory of Untransfiguration." Harry paused. "Now that I think about it, that part was probably the N.E.W.T. Section. Next I had to change into my Animagus form, which I was kind of pissed about because now I'm registered, Finally I had to write out the theory of a Transfiguration spell that I had invented and then cast the spell to prove that it worked."

Lucius stopped, forcing Harry to do the same. "You're an Animagus?"

"Yeah, I'm a Grey Wolf. Are you? An Animagus I mean."

Lucius shook his head. "No. I've never even tried. Maybe you could teach me?"

Harry grinned and started walking again. "I'd love to teach you, little one."

"What was the spell that you created?" Lucius asked as they stepped onto the bridge leading into the castle.

"I've created a few. But the one I used for the exam is the same one I used to defeat Severus in that first duel. The one that conjures all the snakes." Harry answered removing his arm from Lucius' waist.

"You created that spell?" Lucius looked at him in shock. "No wonder they gave you a Mastery in Transfiguration. The spell simultaneously conjures what looked like a hundred snakes and then sends them flying towards the intended victim."

Harry shrugged. "It's easier to conjure things in parseltongue for some reason. I spent sometime trying to do the same thing in Latin, but I couldn't get it right. So far all I've managed to do is send a hundred dead snakes towards the target. Which is pretty much useless, and gross."

Lucius laughed quietly as they entered the courtyard where three Aurors were waiting.

"What are they doing here?" Lucius asked quietly.

Harry grinned. "I asked Kingsley whether I could borrow a few Aurors for the afternoon, just in case Dumbledore throws a fit."

As Harry and Lucius approached them the Aurors all stood up and bowed.

"Lord Malfoy, Lord Potter."

Harry grinned. "I go by Duke Peverell now, actually?"

He held up his ring for them to see.

"My apologies, your grace." The eldest of the Aurors bowed again.

"Don't worry about it." Harry waved a hand dismissively. "You didn't know. What are your names?"

"I am Edmund Dodge, your grace." The eldest Auror spoke first.

"Any relation to Elphias Dodge?" Harry asked curiously.

"Yes, your grace. He's my uncle." Edmund answered Harry before gesturing towards his companions. "This is Clarissa MacMillan and Sherman Gamp. Minister Shacklebolt assigned us to assist you today."

Harry inclined his head. "Thank you. Did Minister Shacklebolt explain what you would be assisting with?"

"No, your grace." Edmund shook his head. "Only that we are to follow your orders."

"Alright then. I'll explain on the way." Harry turned and entered the castle with Lucius by his side. As they walked through the castle corridors, Harry turned to Edmund who was walking beside him. "The Hogwarts Board of Governor's meeting is today, and we plan on making some faculty changes. You will be waiting outside, just in case things become heated."

Edmund nodded in understanding. "Yes, your grace."

Harry grinned at Lucius, this was really happening!

When they arrived at the Boardroom door, the Aurors made themselves comfortable against the walls outside. Lucius entered the room first, with Harry directly behind him. Harry looked around the room, he and Lucius were the last to arrive. Neville was in an argument with his Gran in the corner, Harry frowned in their direction – what was Madame Longbottom doing here? The Slytherins and Arthur were in another corner talking, Boot and McLaggen were laughing together, while Dumbledore and Diggory were sitting at the table together. Harry grinned, this was going to be fun!

Dumbledore saw him first. The Headmaster frowned heavily before standing up and pasting a smile on his face. "Harry, my boy. Whatever are you doing here?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "This is the Hogwarts Board of Governor's meeting is it not, Headmaster? Why wouldn't I be here?"

Dumbledore stared at him for a moment before suddenly beaming at him. "Of course, dear boy. I am simply worried about your safety. You really shouldn't leave the house, Harry, you aren't safe."

Harry barely withheld a snort. Not safe? He was one of the strongest wizards in Europe, and even if he hadn't been exactly who was going to attack him within Hogwarts. He looked around the room and saw the Lucius had moved to sit at the head of the table.

"If everyone could please take their seats and we will begin." Lucius announced loudly.

Harry looked between Dumbledore and Lucius trying to decide where to sit. He wanted to sit beside his mate, but if he did that it might give the game away too soon. He watched as everyone took their seats, Parkinson and Flint either side of Lucius and then Arthur besides Parkinson. Neville sat between Arthur and McLaggen. Diggory sat to McLaggen's left and Dumbledore's right. Madame Longbottom was to Dumbledore's left besides Boot. Harry ended up sitting between Boot and Blaise – who was sitting next to Flint. As Harry sat he looked around the full table, it was probably the first time every house had been represented in at least sixteen years.

Harry pulled a tiny stack of parchment out of his robes and enlarged it, before placing them on the table in front of him. Then he caught Lucius' eye and nodded for him to start.

"I, Lucius Malfoy, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, Head of Hogwarts Board of Governors, do declare the four thousandth and thirty fifth Board of Governor's meeting to be in session." Lucius paused. "Madame Longbottom, you have no reason to be here."

Madame Longbottom draw herself up looking affronted. "Well I never! I have been a member of this Board for sixteen years..."

Lucius interrupted her. "While that may be, you are no longer a member of this Board. Lord Longbottom is now of age and has accepted his position as Head of the House of Longbottom. He is here to represent the Longbottom house, as he should be. You need to leave."

Dumbledore sighed sadly. "Now now, Lucius. That was a little harsh don't you think. Madame Longbottom is doing no harm in being here. There is no reason for her to leave. This is young Neville's first meeting, it is only right that his Gran be here to help him."

Neville stiffened and Harry grinned to himself. Nobody could quite offend an entire room of Wizarding Nobility like Dumbledore could.

"Very well, I will allow her to stay." Lucius sat straight in his chair. "What is the first order of business? Harry, I believe you had something to present."

"Thank you, Lucius." Harry smirked at the tables occupants. "I would like to propose that Headmaster Dumbledore's employment at Hogwarts be terminated effective immediately."

Harry watched as Dumbledore looked shocked and angry before he pasted a hurt expression on his face.

"Harry, my boy..."

Dumbledore paused and was interrupted by Diggory. "You little brat! You think you can just walk in here and propose something like this? Dumbledore is a great wizard. A hero! You are only a child playing at being an adult."

"It's alright, Amos." Dumbledore calmed the other man. "Harry is just confused." He turned to look sadly at Harry. "Why would you want to do this, dear boy?"

"You are a terrible Headmaster!" Harry declared coldly. "You care more about the war and politics than you do the students. Hogwarts needs a Headmaster who will concentrate his energy on the school, instead of focusing most of his attention on trying to single-handedly win a war."

"Harry." Dumbledore sighed. "I'm afraid you are simply too young to understand these things. I do care for my students, very much so. That is why I spend some of my time fighting against Voldemort, so that they will be safe. Besides, dear boy, you can't walk in here and declare that you want a new Headmaster. These things don't work that way."

Harry chuckled. "Oh I think you will find that I can Dumbledore." He levitated a piece of parchment to each of the Board members. "You will have to excuse me, Madame Longbottom, I only brought enough parchment for the members of the Board."

Harry watched as each of the Board members picked up the parchment in front of them and unrolled it. He and Tom had debated how to handle the process of firing Dumbledore. Despite the fact that they had enough votes to dismiss him without any discussion, they had decided to provide evidence of Dumbledore's failures as a Headmaster first.

Diggory was the first to react to what was written on the parchment. He slammed his fist onto the table and glared at Harry. "What do you call this?"

Harry leaned back in his chair with a smirk. "That, is evidence of Nobleman Dumbledore's failures as Hogwarts' Headmaster. Not only have students' grades significantly declined since he became Headmaster, but he has been illegally siphoning money from the Hogwarts budget to the Order of Phoenix."

Dumbledore glared angrily at Harry. "How did you get that?"

Harry grinned. "The goblins were very accommodating. So you don't deny it?"

Dumbledore's expression changed from angry to sad. If Harry hadn't known the other man so well, he might have fallen for it.

"You don't understand, dear boy..."

Harry couldn't help himself from snorting. "I don't need to understand your reasons, Dumbledore. It doesn't matter why you stole from the school, it only matters that you have yet again shown that you care more about the war than you do your students. In the five years I have attended Hogwarts five of the teachers, four of whom you hired, have attacked me.

"Hogwarts' students had a ninety two percent pass rate during the fifty three years that Dippet was Headmaster, only seventy eight percent of students have graduated in your forty years as Headmaster.

"Furthermore, sixty seven percent of students at Hogwarts when Dippet was Headmaster went on to get their Masteries after they had graduated. Do you know how many of your students have gotten masteries Dumbledore? Twenty four percent! Ten students have died at Hogwarts in the last forty years, compared to the four that died in the hundred years before you were Headmaster."

Harry stopped and looked around the room before turning his gaze back to a pale Dumbledore. "You are not a competent Headmaster and I move that you be dismissed.."

"I second that motion." Lucius said quietly.

Dumbledore looked from Harry to Lucius sadly. "I am very disappointed in both of you. Hogwarts will be at risk without me here. I am what keeps the students safe from Voldemort."

"Tell that to the ten students that have died while you have been Headmaster." Lucius snapped. "What does the Aged and Aristocratic House of Boot say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

Boot looked between Harry and Dumbledore. "Yay."

Lucius nodded and turned to Diggory. "What does the Aged and Aristocratic House of Diggory say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

Diggory glared furiously at Harry. "Nay! Hogwarts needs Dumbledore."

"What does the Ancient and Noble House of Flint say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

"Yay."

Harry watched in satisfaction as Dumbledore began to look worried. They only needed nine out of the twelve possible votes for the motion to be passed, and they already had four.

Lucius looked down at piece of parchment in front of him before looking at Neville. "What does the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

"Yay." Neville said firmly.

"Nay." Madame Longbottom glared at her grandson.

Everyone looked between Neville and his Gran.

Lucius cleared his throat. "I'm afraid Madame Longbottom that your vote has no impact in this meeting, you are simply here as an observer."

Madame Longbottom glared at Lucius and then Neville. "I have been the Longbottom Regent for sixteen years! Neville is only a child. He has no idea what he is doing! Headmaster Dumbledore is a great man!"

Harry rolled his eyes and stood up, moving towards the door. He stuck his head out and instantly Edmund walked towards him.

"Is everything alright, Duke Peverell?"

"We are having a slight problem with Madame Longbottom. Would you mind escorting her out please."

Edmund nodded and signalled for his fellow Aurors to stand next to him. "I take it she isn't a Board member, your grace?"

Harry shook his head. "No, she has been the Longbottom regent for many years and is having trouble accepting that her Grandson is now Lord Longbottom."

"Right then." Edmund followed Harry into the room. "Madame Longbottom, if you would come with us please? You are trespassing on an important meeting."

Madame Longbottom, Dumbledore and Diggory looked outraged.

"Well I never!"

"Just who do you think you are?"

"Edmund, dear boy, I'm not sure what Harry has told you, but I assure you that there is no need for this. Minister Shacklebolt would not approve of this."

Edmund just stared at them with a cold expression. "Madame Longbottom, if you don't come with me I will have to arrest you for trespassing."

Madame Longbottom stood with a huff and a glare. "Have you no respect for your betters, boy?"

"Madame Longbottom..."

"Very well. I will leave." She turned to glare at Harry. "I knew you were a bad influence on my Neville. You are making a mistake, boy."

Harry smirked as he watched her escorted out by the Aurors.

Dumbledore turned towards Harry with a reprimanding expression. "Was that really necessarily?"

Lucius cleared his throat again. "What does the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

"Yay!" Neville glared at Dumbledore.

"What does the Aged and Aristocratic House of McLaggen say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

McLaggen shot Dumbledore an apologetic look. "Yay."

"What does the Ancient and Noble House of Parkinson say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

"Yay. It's about time."

Lucius turned to Harry next with a fond smile. "What does the Ancient and Noble House of Potter say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

Dumbledore sat up quickly. "Harry's vote has already been counted. He was the one who made the motion."

Harry rolled his eyes at Dumbledore's stupidity and waved is left hand bearing both the Potter and Black House rings in Dumbledore' direction. "I have both the Potter and Black votes Dumbledore. And the Potter House votes Yay."

"What does the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

Arthur looked at Dumbledore for a moment before turning to Lucius. "Yay."

Harry grinned. That was their nine votes! Dumbledore was officially fired.

"What does the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini say in regards to the termination of Nobleman Dumbledore's contract with Hogwarts?"

Zabini smirked at Dumbledore. "I know my two votes are rather superfluous at this point, but I vote yay. Maybe you shouldn't have been so prejudice against us Slytherins, Dumbledore."

Lucius looked straight ahead at Dumbledore. "Eleven votes for and one vote against. Nobleman Dumbledore your contract with Hogwarts is terminated. You are dismissed from this meeting and have twenty four hours to clear your things from Hogwarts grounds."

Dumbledore sighed sadly. "If that is truly the Governor's wish then I will do as you say." He looked around the table as if expecting them to change their minds before his gaze landed on Harry. "I am disappointed you, Harry, dear boy. I would have thought you, of all people, would have understood how important my presence here at Hogwarts is."

"You are dismissed from the meeting, Dumbledore." Lucius repeated. "You can either leave on your own accord or be escorted out by the Aurors outside.

Dumbledore gave them all one last disappointed look before standing. "I won't cause any trouble. When Hogwarts is in need, remember that I will always be willing to help those who ask for it."

Harry couldn't help rolling his eyes yet again at at Dumbledore's dramatics. Everyone watched in silence as the former Headmaster strode out of the room. When the door was closed behind him Diggory seemed to come out of a haze.

"You can't do that! Hogwarts will never survive without Dumbledore!"

"Oh be quiet, Amos." Arthur snapped. "Protesting won't help. Dumbledore is fired, good riddance I say."

Diggory stared at the normally calm man seemingly speechless.

"Moving on." Lucius said. "I would like to propose that Severus Snape be hired as the next Hogwarts Headmaster."

"Seconded." Harry said.

"What?" Diggory squeaked. "Snape? But he's a Death Eater. There isn't a student that doesn't hate him!"

Lucius ignored him. "Votes in favour of Severus being hired as Headmaster?"

Unsurprisingly the motion passed eleven votes to one. Diggory stared at them in shock.

"You're all in on this aren't you? No matter what Malfoy or Potter suggest you will all vote in favour of it."

Neville smirked at him. "Pretty much."

Diggory stared at them with his mouth open. "Is he blackmailing you? Because if he is..."

"He's not blackmailing us, Amos." Arthur said. "We just support their plans."

Diggory stood up. "I refuse to sit here and watch as you destroy Hogwarts. Not only have you gotten rid of the only man You-Know-Who is afraid of, you are hiring a Death-Eater as Headmaster. It's almost as though you want You-Know-Who to gain control of..." He trailed off before staring at them all in horror. "You're all working for You-Know-Who!"

Harry laughed. "Don't be absurd, Nobleman Diggory. Arthur, Neville and I are as light as they come, you know that. I'm the Boy-Who-Lived for crying out loud. We just think a few changes should be made at Hogwarts. Severus isn't a Death-Eater, he is a spy. Even Dumbledore vouches for him."

Diggory glared at Harry looking unconvinced. "You won't get away with this, Potter!"

Harry watched as the man stormed out of the room slamming the door behind him before turning to look at Lucius. "Well, that was unexpectedly helpful."

Arthur chuckled. "It will certainly make things easier."

"Now what?" Boot asked cautiously. "Do we continue the meeting without a Headmaster? Or do we adjourn for a few days until Snape can be here?"

"Neither." Harry said with a grin. "I told Severus to come here at three. What's the time?"

Neville pulled out his wand. "Tempus... it's seven minutes till three."

"Good." Harry said with a smile of thanks. "So we will just socialise for a few minutes, maybe get some food from the House Elves, while we wait."

"I have one small order of business first." Lucius started. "I move for Harry to be made the Head of the Hogwarts' Board of Governors."

"W-what? No." Harry stuttered.

"Seconded." Blaise said quickly.

"Votes in favour?" Lucius drawled ignoring Harry's pointed glare.

"Yay!" Eight voices chorused.

Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Fine."

"It makes sense, Harry." Neville said apologetically. "You were already in charge. This way it just makes it official."

"Fine." Harry repeated. "Arthur could you call House Elves for food and drinks please? Lucius, I would like a word."

Harry stood and walked towards one of the corners of the room. He waited until Lucius had joined him before putting up a Silencing charm and glamour.

"What was that?" He hissed angrily.

Lucius bared his neck quickly. "I'm sorry. I just thought..."

"Lucius, I know that our mating is new and that you have spent many years acting on your own, but you don't ever make decisions like that without consulting me first!" Harry grabbed his mate's hands in his own. "I know you meant it for the best, and maybe you and Neville are right and it is was the best thing to do, but I really didn't want to have to be the Head Governor. You were doing a great job at it, and I have enough of my plate as it is."

"I'm sorry." Lucius said meekly. "You're right. I hated the job though. I hate leading things, it's really hard for me. I'm not a leader, I'm a follower. The only reason I agreed to do the job in the first place was because there was no other person, on our side at least, that could do it. And I thought, now that you're here and so good at leading things, that you could do it. I didn't plan on it, Domine. All the arguing just got to me, and I was supposed to control it and I hated it. I really am sorry!"

Harry sighed and pulled his mate into a hug. "It's alright, little one. Next time just tell me and I will fix it for you, ok?"

Lucius nodded. "Yes, Domine."

Harry pulled Lucius' head down so he could kiss him. When they had broken apart Harry grinned.

"Did you see Dumbledore's face? Oh it was brilliant! I've been dreaming of that moment for years."

Lucius laughed. "Me too. Severus will be here soon. I should go wait for him outside. Only one of the Governors can find this room."

Harry let go of Lucius and took down the spells. "Alright then. Fill him in on all that has happened on the way."

Lucius nodded and left quickly, as Harry moved back towards the table where everyone was standing around talking.

"Everything alright, Harry?" Arthur asked looking at the door Lucius had just left through worriedly.

"Yeah. Lucius has just gone to get Severus so we can get going again."

"Oh." Arthur nodded. "Congratulations by the way. Percy told me about your O.W.L results. They're extraordinary."

"What were you're O.W.L results, Harry?" Neville asked.

Harry looked around and realised that all the conversations around them had stopped and were waiting for his answer.

"Well I got an Acceptable in my Divination O.W.L. I have ten N.E.W.T.s, and three Masteries."

Neville laughed. "Three Masteries? Merlin, Harry, you never do things in halves, do you?"

"What were your Masteries in, your grace?" Parkinson asked.

"Defence, Runes and Transfiguration." Harry answered before turning to Neville and Blaise. "How did your O. go?"

Neville was the first to answer. "Really well. I passed all of my nine O. and I got an O on all but the History or Divination ones, which I didn't care about. I'm still in shock that I managed to get an O in Potions though."

Blaise gave Neville a surprised look. "You got an O in Potions? Have you been pretending to be terrible like Duke Peverell?"

Neville laughed. "No. That's why I was so surprised. Harry spent the whole Saturday before exams started tutoring me on Potions but I hadn't expected it to work quite that well. What were you're results, Blaise?"

"I passed nine out my ten O. . I failed my Muggle studies one, not for lack of trying though. The Professor just made no sense. I only got an O in five of them though." Blaise said before grabbing another biscuit of the table. "How did Teddy and Draco do?"

Harry grinned with pride. "Really well. Draco passed all nine O. , and he got an O in all of them except Care of Magical Creatures, Runes and Divination. While Teddy passed all ten of his O. with seven Outstandings. He got an EE in Care of Magical Creatures, Defence and Runes."

Blaise laughed. "Two of the subjects I didn't get an Outstanding on were Runes and Care of Magical Creatures. We always get really similar grades."

Harry smirked. "Just think, if you had memorised the Futhark Alphabet you might have all gotten an Outstanding in Runes."


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

25-25-25

When Lucius entered the Board room again, this time with Severus behind him, he noticed that someone had shortened the table. He silently cursed himself for never having thought of the idea, despite years of meetings during which there had always been at least four empty seats.

The seating arrangements had changed this time. Harry sat at the head of the table with an empty seat - presumably for Lucius - on his right and Longbottom on his left. Blaise was seated beside Longbottom, and Arthur beside Lucius' seat, while Flint and Lycoris sat either side of Severus' seat at the foot of the table. Boot and McLaggen sat in the middle between Flint and Arthur, and Blaise and Lycoris.

"Ah Lucius, Severus." Harry said with a smile. "Come in and take a seat."

When they were both seated Harry started again. "Congratulations, Severus, you are the new Headmaster of Hogwarts."

Severus inclined his head.

"I take it Lucius has brought you up to speed?" Harry asked.

"Yes, thank you."

Harry grinned and leaned back in his chair. Part of Lucius envied him. In all the years that he had held the position of Head Governor, he had never managed to have such complete control over the room as Harry did.

"Wonderful! I don't expect this to take long, as nearly all of you have already been told about the new plans for Hogwarts. Before we start anything new, however, Arthur, you were put in charge of the search for new Professors. How is that going?"

Lucius turned in his chair so he could watch as Arthur picked a sheet of parchment up off the table and cleared his throat.

"Well, I spoke to Madame Pomfrey and she said that she was happy to teach a Healing class. Lucius is to be the Politics Professor. There has been some interest in the Potions position, the best candidate is an American Potions Mistress named Natasha Cassidy." He turned to Severus. "Have you heard of her?"

"Yes. I have met her a few times at Potion Forums. She has published some good articles as well. She would be an excellent Potions Mistress for Hogwarts." Severus answered. "You should ask her to come in for an interview this week."

Arthur nodded. "Yes that was what I thought too. I think all of the candidates should come in for an interview in the next week."

"Who would they meet with?" Longbottom asked. "I would feel weird interviewing my future professors, and I don't think that all ten of us will be need to be there."

Harry leaned forward and began pouring himself a drink from a jug of Pumpkin juice that was on the table. "Lucius, Arthur, Severus and I should meet with them."

Everyone nodded and murmured their agreement.

"What else, Arthur?" Harry asked.

"We have three applicants for the Muggle Studies position, two for the History position, one for the Divination position and two for the Latin position. One of the Latin applicants is a linguist, she knows seven languages."

"If we hire the linguist we could offer classes in other languages like Flint suggested a few weeks ago." Lycoris suggested. "If some students came out of Hogwarts knowing Gobbledegook it would probably help with Goblin relations."

"That would be good. I'll keep that in mind while we're interviewing them. Can you arrange for each of the applicants to come here for an interview in the first two days of next week Arthur?" Harry asked as he began to twirl his wand through his fingers. "The Hogwarts supplies list is supposed to go out at the end of next week, and we will need to have Professors by then."

Arthur nodded and brought a quill out of his robe to write on the parchment.

"What about the Politics and Defence teacher?" McLaggen asked curiously.

"I will be teaching Politics." Lucius said.

"And I will be the new Defence teacher." Harry was still twirling his wand through his fingers.

"Aren't you a bit young?" Boot ventured cautiously.

Harry sat up, placing the wand back in his robes. "That's what I said."

Neville snickered and the entire table turned to look at him.

"Sorry. It's just that, that is exactly what he said. Many, many times in fact. But he was significantly outvoted."

"I take it that you have received both a Hogwarts diploma and your Mastery in Defence, Harry?" Severus asked seriously.

"Yeah."

"Good." Severus smiled. Though Lucius thought that he was probably the only one who had noticed. In public Severus' smiles were almost impossible to recognise. "What is next on the agenda?"

"Uniforms?" Blaise suggested.

"What about the Uniforms?" Boot looked around confused.

Harry sat forward. "We want to make the robes optional."

"Except for special occasions." Lucius added.

"Yes." Harry agreed. "Students will still be required to have robes, for occasions such as the Welcoming and Leaving Feasts, and they are certainly allowed to wear them if they prefer. But otherwise they will simply required to wear the pants, or skirt, shirt and tie that they would normally wear under their robes."

"What about during winter?" McLaggen asked. "And what about the House colours?"

"They will have jerseys and coats to wear during winter if they wish, and as I said they are allowed to wear their robes whenever they want. They just wouldn't be compulsory anymore." Harry replied. "They will still have their different house ties, and their House emblem will be on the shirts and jerseys as well."

"Sounds simple enough." Boot said with a nod. "I move that uniforms be changed."

"Seconded."

"All in favour?"

The yays filled the room and Lucius wondered why they even bothered taking the vote when it was obvious it would be passed.

"Has everyone heard the plan regarding resortings, Year Level Deans, unsorted First Years and the like?" Severus asked looking around the table.

Everyone nodded.

"I have a question about that." Arthur said. "What about Quidditch?"

"Well the first years aren't allowed to play anyway." Flint pointed out.

"The seventh years will still belong to Houses even if they don't live in the dormitories." Lycoris put in.

"And if a student moves House then they will change team." Harry said. "The likelihood is that so many students will end up being resorted that there won't be any resentment."

McLaggen sighed. "It virtually dooms both the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw teams though. The only time they ever have a good player is when a student has matured into more of a Gryffindor or Slytherin."

"Hey!" Boot protested. "I was a brilliant beater back in my day."

McLaggen laughed. "Yes, but you've been more Gryffindor than Hufflepuff since you were thirteen."

25-25-25

**Dumbledore Fired From Hogwarts**

_Written by Elise Branstone_

_Nobleman Albus Dumbledore has been dismissed from his position as Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry due to negligence. The former Headmaster's negligence was discovered by one of the Governors. Duke Peverell (formerly known as Harry Potter) apparently took it upon himself to compare the statistics of Dumbledore's time as Headmaster and those of the previous Headmaster, Armando Dippet._

_"The findings were shocking," Duke Peverell told me. "The number of students who graduate from Hogwarts has gone from ninety two percent of the original class size, to seventy eight percent. While the Board respects Dumbledore's efforts in the war against You-Know-Who, we need a Headmaster who will focus on the school and it's students."_

_As an investigative reporter, I decided to do some research of my own and discovered that Duke Peverell's figures are indeed correct. Not only that, but the number of students who go on to get their Masteries after leaving Hogwarts has dropped from sixty seven percent of the graduates, to twenty four percent. _

_After still more research I discovered that ten students have died during the school year while Dumbledore has been Headmaster, in contrast to the single student that died while Dippet was Headmaster of Hogwarts. I, for one, feel better knowing that a more concerned Headmaster will be watching over my children this coming year at Hogwarts._

_Who is on the Hogwarts Board of Governors? Pg. 13 _

_**Severus Snape Hired as Hogwarts Headmaster**_

_Written by Rodney Gamp_

_Only minutes after the statement that Dumbledore had been fired, another statement was released announcing that Severus Snape had been hired as the new Headmaster. Snape is a controversial choice as he was accused of being a Death-Eater at the end of the last war. He escaped conviction after Dumbledore vouched for his innocence. _

_One of the Hogwarts Governors, Nobleman Boot, made this statement. "Severus Snape has been an exemplary Professor at Hogwarts for fifteen years. We believe that he has Hogwarts' best interests at heart and will do everything in his power to both keep the school safe and help the students to reach their potential."..._

_**Changes at Hogwarts**_

_Written by Quil O'Papyrus _

_The Hogwarts Board of Governors have released a statement informing the public that there will be many changes at Hogwarts this year. New classes will be introduced, along with new faculty, a new uniform and changes to the House system..._

**Boy-Who-Lived All Grown Up**

_Written by Elise Branstone_

_On July the 31__st__, our very own Harry Potter - the Boy-Who-Lived – turned seventeen and came into his inheritance. It is widely known that he would inherit the Potter Lordship, but Harry has inherited not one but four noble titles. As well as being Lord Potter, our boy hero is now Duke Peverell, Duke Gryffindor, and Lord Black, making him the richest wizard in England. Not only that, but Harry (from now on referred to as Duke Peverell) has fourteen votes in the Wizengamot and two in the Hogwarts Board of Governors. _

_When I asked what he planned to do with his new-found power and money, Duke Peverell's only answer was that he wanted to "make the Wizarding World a better place." Duke Peverell denied being the sole instigator of change at Hogwarts (see Pg. 7 for list of changes) claiming that it had a been a joint venture with almost all members of the Board..._

Lucius looked up from the Daily Prophet and across the table at Harry who had been watching him read.

"Well what do you think?" Harry asked.

Lucius folded the paper and placed it on the table. "It's a good pre-emptive strike. If Dumbledore tries to plead his case publicly he won't get far, likewise if he tries to make you out as a Dark wizard."

Harry grinned. "Ah, but I am a Dark wizard."

"Yes, but they don't know that. All that they know is that you just saved their children from a Headmaster that has allowed ten of their children to die, and that you have inherited two completely Light titles."

"As well as a Dark title and a Neutral title."

"True." Lucius admitted. "But the Peverell's have always come across slightly more Light Neutral than Dark Neutral, so that's another point in your favour."

"And the Black title?" Harry asked resting his chin on his hand.

"Make some noise about disposing of the Dark artefacts and buy a few shares from Light affiliated companies in the Black name. Everyone will presume that you hate the Dark, and are trying to make the best of the situation." Lucius suggested.

Harry grinned. "Thanks. Some things just can't be learnt in books."

"Do you have any more Daily Prophet articles planned?" Lucius asked.

"Yeah. We will be releasing a list of the new faculty, along with an article explaining why, I, a seventeen year old will be the new Magical Defence Professor." Harry stood and walked around the table before pulling Lucius into his arms. "There will also be an article announcing our bonding."

Lucius hummed happily. "Does that mean that we will be officially filing our bonding with the Ministry?"

"Yes."

Lucius sighed happily as Harry kissed him gently. "I'm glad. I didn't want to have to hide it at Hogwarts."

"I don't think I could hide it." Harry said. "To have to sit besides you at meals three times a day and not be able to touch you, and kiss you. It would be horrible."

Lucius laughed softly. "Yes, it would. There's another owl coming."

"Really?" Harry turned around. "So there is. Do you recognise it?"

"No." Lucius held out an arm for the owl to land on, and then retrieved the letter. "It's for you."

After handing the letter to Harry, Lucius sat down at the table again and fed the owl some grapes.

"It's from Dumbledore." Harry said with a small laugh. "I should have been expecting this."

Lucius looked up from the owl with interest. "What does it say?"

"Well, he's confused, disappointed, hurt, misunderstood, and wants to meet me this afternoon." Harry replied.

"Will you meet him?" Lucius asked curiously.

Harry nodded. "Yes, I think so. It needs to happen sometime. I'll need to meet with Tom first though. We haven't figured out exactly what we're going to do with him."

Lucius raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You haven't?"

"No." Harry summoned some parchment and a quill. "I'll go and see Tom in a few minutes. What are your plans for the day?"

Lucius fed the owl another grape. "I'm going to rest. It's been a big week, and with the curse – I'm exhausted. I might start working on my lesson plans this afternoon though."

Harry finished writing and handed the parchment over. "That's to go back to Dumbledore, can you attach it to the owl please? I'm glad you're going to rest, you seemed particularly tired last night. What are the boys doing today?"

Lucius sent the owl on it's way with one last grape before looking back at Harry. "They're spending the day with Blaise and Daphne Greengrass."

"Oh?" Harry looked surprised. "I wasn't aware they were that close with Greengrass."

"They are." Lucius answered. "Daphne is the only other Slytherin in their year that they get along with. The Davis and Parkinson girls are vapid gold diggers, and Bulstrode's daughter lacks finesse."

"What of Crabbe and Goyle?" Harry asked with a small smirk.

Lucius let out a laugh. "They have even less intelligence than their Fathers, and that is saying something. None of the boys are particularly tolerant of stupidity."

"Understandably." Harry said as he stood up. "Well, I need to go see Tom now. I'll likely not be home for lunch." He moved to stand next to Lucius' chair and leant down for a soft kiss. "Have a good day, my love."

25-25-25

Harry apparated into the entrance hall of Riddle Manor and then strode quickly down the hall towards Tom's office, ignoring all the Death Eaters he passed. Once at Tom's office he knocked on the closed door, and then let himself in. Tom, who was sitting behind his desk, looked up with raised eyebrows.

"Harry! I wasn't expecting you."

Harry walked across the room and made himself comfortable in his usual armchair, while Tom moved to sit in the armchair across from him.

"No, sorry. I got a missive from Dumbledore this morning. I'm going to meet with him this afternoon."

"Ah." Tom snapped his fingers for a House Elf and ordered tea. "I suppose we need to decided what we plan to do with him then."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. The way I figure it we have three options, kill him, prosecute him, or exile him."

Tom smirked. "Well I know which one I vote for."

Harry chuckled. "Yes, me too. But we have the public on our side at the moment, if we were to murder Dumbledore 'unjustly' he would become a martyr."

The tea arrived, and Tom poured both himself and Harry a cup. "Do we have enough evidence to prosecute him?"

Harry shrugged and accepted the teacup from Tom. "I don't know, maybe? Perhaps I should arrange to meet with Madame Bones first."

"I don't want to let him go." Tom said firmly. "He's dangerous."

Harry nodded and took a sip of his tea. "Agreed."

"How did the meeting go yesterday?" Tom asked. "Did you get everything done?"

"It went wonderfully." Harry answered. "Everything is being implemented, I'm now the Head of the Board of Governors. Lucius, Arthur, Severus and I will be interviewing candidates for the open teaching positions next week."

"How is Lucius?" Tom asked. "Has Severus finished the potion to cure him yet?"

Harry shook his head. "Not yet. Lucius is good, he's resting today. Severus says that he expects to have the potion done by Halloween, something about moon cycles."

Tom frowned. "That's almost three months away."

"Yeah." Harry said. "But at least Lucius can still function at some level. He'll just have to go slowly for the next three months. What have you been working on?"

Tom sighed. "I'm writing proposals to bring before the Wizengamot when it starts up again. It's slow going."

"Which ones?"

"I finished the muggleborn ones yesterday." Tom replied. "I'll give you a copy to read. I'm working on the werewolf one at the moment."

"Tempus." Harry looked at the time, and then put his teacup on the table. "I'd love to read what you've done. I'll get Lucius and Percy to read through it too, if that's alright with you, and get their opinion on it. I should go now though. I'm supposed to be meeting Dumbledore in a few hours, and I need to meet with Madame Bones first."

"You aren't planning on meeting him alone are you?" Tom asked, standing up and moving over to his desk.

Harry rolled his eyes. "No, I think that I'll take Bill along. That way my Light image will be preserved. I'll see what Madame Bones says. If I'm lucky I might be able to take an team of Aurors with me."

Tom passed a few rolls of parchment to Harry. "That's the muggleborn proposal, and everything I've done on the werewolf one. Have a look and get back to me."

"Sure." Harry shrunk the parchment and put it in his pocket. "Have a good day. I'll let you know how everything goes."

"Send me a Pensive Memory of your meeting, will you?" Tom asked. "Especially if he gets arrested."

Harry laughed. "Will do. Bye." He strode through the halls again, this time towards the Entrance Hall, and then Apparated to the Ministry. After having his wand registered by the security, Harry made his way into the elevator and then up to the Department of Law Enforcement floor.

"Can I help you?"

Harry's attention was drawn to a wizard who was sitting behind a desk. "Yes, could you inform Madame Bones that Duke Peverell needs to speak to her."

The wizard stared at him for a moment before recovering. "I, yes, your grace. Could you please wait for a minute?"

Harry nodded in agreement and sat in one of the chairs in front of the desk.

A few minutes later the wizard returned and Harry stood up again. "Madame Bones will see you. She's through that door."

"Thank you." Harry nodded at the man and moved through the door.

"Duke Peverell." Madame Bones stood as he entered and gestured towards the seat in front of her desk. "What can I do for you today?"

Harry sat down, quickly followed by Madame Bones. "Good morning, Madame, I need to speak to you about Dumbledore."

"And you couldn't make an appointment?" Madame Bones asked with a sigh.

Harry smiled. "Sorry, it's rather urgent."

Madame Bones sighed again before nodding. "Very well. Would you like some tea?"

"Yes, thank you." Harry waited for the tea to be served before continuing. "I'm sure you're aware that Dumbledore was fired from Hogwarts yesterday?"

Madame Bones nodded. "Yes, for negligence, the Prophet said. Is it true that ten students have died during the time that he was Headmaster?"

Harry inclined his head. "Unfortunately, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. What I need to know is can you prosecute him for Criminal Negligence resulting in death?"

"That depends." Madame Bones replied leaning back in her chair. "What exactly were the circumstances?"

"I don't know about all of them, but I can give you a few examples." Harry offered.

"Please do."

"You of course remember the murder of Cedric Diggory?" Harry asked.

"Yes, as I recall you claimed that he was murdered by Voldemort." Madame Bones replied dryly. "The same Voldemort who you are now in leagues with."

Harry ignored her. "Cedric died because the tournament cup was a portkey which transported us away. According to the rules that govern Hogwarts, Headmasters are required to create anti-portkey wards on Hogwarts grounds. According to Severus Snape there have always been anti-portkey wards at Hogwarts, and the only time he can ever remember them not being there was that year."

Madame Bones stared at Harry for a moment. "Are you suggesting that Dumbledore purposefully left the wards down? That he knew what was going to happen?"

"I don't think he knew what was going to happen, in fact I have no idea what his motives were, but he was the person responsible for the wards and Cedric died because they were down." Harry replied.

"I see." Madame Bones took a sip of tea. "You said you had other examples?"

"Yeah, twenty four years ago two Gryffindor sixth years named Benjamin Murphy and Rebecca Slint died in a potions accident. Murphy was awful at potions and failed his O.W.L., but he wanted to be an Auror – which he needed his Potions N.E.W.T. for. The Potions Master at the time was Horace Slughorn. Slughorn refused to allow Murphy into his class. Dumbledore over ruled Slughorn and forced him to teach the boy. Three weeks into the class Murphy added Pixie wings to an Ulcer Removing Potion. The resulting explosion killed both Murphy and his partner Slint."

"Oh dear." Madame Bones sat forward in her chair. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." Harry nodded firmly. "Even worse, the exact same thing happened again eighteen years ago, only that time it was a Gryffindor named Peter Wilson and his Hufflepuff partner Darrell Blishwick who died."

Madame Bones had pulled out a sheet of parchment and was writing on it. "Do you have proof?"

"Yes." Harry said pulling memory vials out of his pocket and unshrinking them. "I have Slughorns memories of the events."

"Anything else?" Madame Bones asked.

"Nothing death related." Harry said with a shake of his head. "There is, of course, the fact that he knowingly left me with abusive muggles."

Madame Bones frowned. "Knowingly?"

"Well I can't say for sure when I was a child." Harry answered. "But I told him in first year and he sent me back again. Apparently the wards on the house were more important."

Madame Bones was quiet for a moment as she continued writing on the parchment, before looking up.

"You said it was urgent that you speak to me today. Why?"

"Dumbledore sent me a letter this morning." Harry said, pulling the parchment out of his pocket and handing to to the older woman. "I'm meeting with him in a few hours and I need to know what my options are. Tom and I can't afford to have him around, so we have three options. We can kill him, which we don't want to do, we can have him arrested, or we can exile him. We don't want to exile him either, he's a very dangerous and manipulative man, which leaves having him arrested." Harry shrugged. "I'm here to find out whether than is an option after all."

"It certainly is." Madame Bones said with a nod of her head. "If everything you've told me is true then we can definitely arrest him, and if those memories contain what you say they do I have means to dose him up with Veritaserum and question him about any laws he has broken."

Harry grinned. "Perfect. Would this afternoon be too soon for you to arrest him?"

Madame Bones shook her head with a small smile on her lips. "No, I presume you want to talk to him first?"

"Yeah, we're meeting at The Three Broomsticks. I don't want to talk to him for long, but maybe ten minutes would be nice."

"What time are you meeting him." Madame Bones asked.

"One thirty." Harry said. "Would you like help arresting him?"

Madame Bones narrowed her eyes slightly.

"I don't mean to suggest that your Aurors can't handle it." Harry said with an apologetic smile. "But Dumbledore is very powerful, and there are very few wizards who could take him on and win."

Madame Bones laughed lightly. "And I suppose you're one of them."

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, me and Tom. I'm sure there are others that I haven't met."

"Very well." Madame Bones inclined her head. "_If _Dumbledore resists arrest, you may assist the Aurors in stunning him."

Harry grinned. "Thank you."

Rolling her eyes, Madame Bones made a shooing motion with her hands. "You can leave now. I have a lot of work that needs to be done before one thirty."

Harry stood and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Madame."

"Good day, Duke Peverell."


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

26-26-26

Harry and Bill arrived at the Three Broomsticks at one twenty. They ordered drinks and some chips and sat down at a table to wait for Dumbledore. Harry smirked slightly when he recognised the three Aurors that had helped him at Hogwarts the previous day sitting at another table.

"Why do you want to talk to him?" Bill asked curiously. "Surely it would just be easier to allow the Aurors take him away the minute he arrives."

"I want to hear his attempts to convince me that I should make him Headmaster again." Harry said with a smirk. "Should be amusing."

Bill laughed. "Isn't that kind of petty?"

Harry grabbed a chip from the bowl on the table and shrugged. "Yes, but I think I have the right to be a little petty if I want to."

They sat in silence for a minutes before Harry looked at the older man with a smirk. "I've noticed you and Severus getting close. You certainly talk a lot whenever you see each other. Is anything going on?" He wiggled his eyebrows teasingly.

Bill grinned. "Not yet, but I'm working on it. At the moment we're just having fascinating conversations. Did you know that he spent some time in Egypt? And he's working on a potion to allow someone to see the wards."

Harry tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Can't ward breakers already do that?"

"Yes, but it's a gift, like the metamorph ability. I was born being able to see wards, and because of that I was able to become a ward breaker. With this potion anyone could become a ward breaker if they were powerful enough."

"Huh, so that's a good thing? Won't the wizards who can see wards naturally get upset if they're beaten out of their jobs by people using potions?"

Bill shrugged. "Possibly, but there aren't enough trained ward breakers anyway. The training is very intense and a lot of people don't make it."

"Your parents must have been really proud when you got your Mastery."

"Dad was, Mum not so much. I think she wanted me to work at the Ministry or do something that pays a lot." Bill laughed quietly. "She was really pissed off when when Charlie gave up three offers to play professional quidditch and decided to work towards Mastery in Magical Creatures instead. She tried to ban him from the house when she found out, it was one of the only times I ever saw Dad stand up to her."

"At least Percy went in to politics." Harry commented. "I would have loved to have seen her face when Fred and George told her that they were opening a joke shop."

"Yea, it wasn't pretty."

"What has your Dad decided to do about Ron and Ginny? I haven't heard."

Bill sighed tiredly. "Nothing yet. I think the idea of disowning his kids is a lot harder to swallow than just divorcing his wife who he never wanted to marry in the first place. I don't think he'll do anything unless they do something new. He's asked us all to keep out eyes on them and let him know if anything happens, I guess that goes for you as well."

Harry nodded. "Sure. Have you had any contact with them and your Mum since the divorce?"

"Just twice. The day after Dad divorced her, Mum, Ron, and Ginny came around to get our support. When Percy and I told them that we supported Dad, Mum tried to disown us. Not that she could of course, but she wasn't happy. I saw them all again about two weeks ago in Diagon Alley. Apparently Mum is looking for a job."

Harry snorted in amusement. "What kind of job?"

"We didn't exactly discuss it." Bill said dryly. "The moment she saw me she started to loudly yell about how I had betrayed her and my family. That I had left her and my younger siblings so destitute that she was having to find a job. I almost ran to the Apparation Point to get away from her."

Harry laughed. "If there's one thing that your mother and younger siblings are good at, it's causing a scene." Harry sat up straighter and cleaned the salt from the chips off his fingers. "He's here."

"Good." Bill grabbed a few chips. "Are the others?"

"Yes, they were here when we arrived." Harry replied before standing up to greet Dumbledore who was approaching.

"Good afternoon, Nobleman Dumbledore." Harry inclined his head at the older man. "Please have a seat."

"Hello, dear boy." Dumbledore said with a smile. "Afternoon, Bill, I didn't know that you would be here today."

Harry sat down and indicated for Dumbledore to do the same. "We thought it was best, safety wise, if Bill joined me. I was sure that you wouldn't mind."

"Of course not." Dumbledore beamed. "I'm pleased to see that you're taking your safety seriously."

Harry smirked slightly. "I'm sure you are, Dumbledore."

Dumbledore frowned slightly. "That's Professor Dumbledore, Harry."

Harry laughed slightly. "Actually,_ Nobleman Dumbledore, _it's not. You're no longer employed by Hogwarts. Besides which, if you want to be formal I really must insist that you refer to me as Duke Peverell."

Dumbledore's frown grew. "Yes, about that. I really don't understand why you would want me away from Hogwarts, my boy. I have done nothing but protect the school and it's students since I started teaching there."

"Yeah, well, tell that to the ten students who have died while you were at Hogwarts." Harry snapped. "If you had really cared you wouldn't have used the school to guard the stone knowing that Voldemort was trying to steal it, or allow a deadly tournament to be restarted." Harry paused and took a deep breath. "Face it, Dumbledore, you tried to push your own agendas, made mistakes, and people died."

Dumbledore shook his head. "I don't know what you mean, Harry. I only wanted the best for Hogwarts, for the students."

"All the students?" Harry asked snagging more chips from the bowl. "Or just your precious Gryffindors. What of the Hufflepuffs? Or the Ravenclaws? Or the Slytherins? Students like Severus Snape who you allowed to be bullied so badly that they turned dark? I did some reading, there was hardly a rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin when you first became Headmaster – just a friendly competition when it came to the House or Quidditch cups. You're the one the cause the hatred to grow between the houses."

Dumbledore scoffed. "Don't be daft, Harry. There has always been, and will always be, a natural hatred between Light and Dark and for good reason. Light in order, and Dark is chaos; it is the task of the Light to eradicate all Dark from the earth."

Harry shook his head firmly. "Not in a school it's not. What was it that you wanted to speak to me about?"

"You must convince the Board of Governors to allow me to return to my post as Headmaster, Harry." Dumbledore said. "Without me at Hogwarts, Voldemort will attack. The students aren't safe."

Harry smirked. "Why on earth would I do that? I was the one who convinced them to fire you." He leaned forward. "You aren't good for the school, Dumbledore, and as the Head of the Board of Governors I can promise you that you will never be employed by Hogwarts again."

Dumbledore stared at him for a moment. "Head of the... That's another thing, Harry. I don't know where you got it into your head to start calling yourself Duke Peverell..."

Harry interrupted him with a laugh. "But I am Duke Peverell. I went to Gringotts and they informed me that as well as being Lord Potter, I am also Lord Black, Duke Gryffindor, and Duke Peverell. That makes me the most influential and high ranking wizard in Britain."

Dumbledore stared at Harry for a moment. "I do hope you haven't started believing all that pureblood nonsense about the power behind titles, Harry. They are completely ineffective in this day and age."

Harry laughed again. "I disagree. My fourteen seats on the Wizengamot are anything but ineffective. I'm not sure what world you have been living in, _Nobleman_ Dumbledore, but I think you'll find that it is the Lords and Dukes of our country who control everything. Admittedly they may have been lax in using that control recently, but they have people to guide them now and I'm sure that you will begin to see just what we are really capable of."

Dumbledore just stared at him so Harry took a last mouthful of his Butterbeer and stood up, Bill followed him.

"Good day, Dumbledore." Harry smirked as the five Aurors that had been sent stood up as well. "Do have a pleasant afternoon."

"Harry, I..." Dumbledore stood as well and trailed off as he saw the Aurors.

Edmund Dodge stepped forward. "Nobleman Dumbledore, you are under arrest. You are being charged with ten cases of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter. Please come with us quietly, sir."

"Manslaughter?" Dumbledore repeated confusedly. "But, I never."

"Please come with us, sir." Edmund repeated patiently.

"My dear man," Dumbledore started with a smile. "Don't you know who I am. I'm sure that Amelia would have never authorised this."

Edmund sighed. "I have the parchment with Madame Bones signature on it, sir. Will you come with us? Or do we need to take extra action?"

Dumbledore looked towards Harry. "Harry, my dear boy, this must be some kind of mistake."

Harry laughed bitterly. "Oh, so it was some kind of mistake when you paid Ron and Hermione to spy on me? Or when you forced me to stay with the Dursleys when you knew that they starved me. Trust me, Dumbledore, this isn't a mistake. Now are you going to go with Aurors or are they going to have to stun you?"

Dumbledore raised his hands to show that they were empty. "Of course I'll accompany the Aurors to their offices. I'm sure we can sort everything out there."

Harry just grinned and watched as Dumbledore was Portkeyed away by the Aurors. Then he turned to Bill.

"Well that was fun. I can't wait to show the memory to Tom."

Bill laughed. "I'm sure he'll love it." They left the building and began walking through Hogsmeade. "You know I'm kind of surprised that the two of you didn't just kill him."

"We wanted to." Harry said and he scowled. "And he certainly deserved it, but if we kill him he'll become a martyr. This way he will become a pariah instead, and hopefully an imprisoned one."

26-26-26

The following Monday morning, Harry and Lucius arrived at Hogwarts armed with coffee and doughnuts. They were the first to arrive and made themselves at home at one side of the table. They, along with Severus and Arthur, had decided to hold the interviews in a small meeting room close to the Hogwarts Entrance to save time having to guide the candidates to and from the room.

"Did Arthur say who we're interviewing first?" Lucius asked leaning his head against Harry's shoulder. He was always tired these days. It was incredibly frustrating to be unable to do the things he wanted to, and needed to, because of an energy sucking curse. Severus said it would be a few months until there was a cure, but apparently he had made progress – something to do with melted quartz.

"The Divination candidate." Harry answered him, running his fingers through Lucius' hair. "Arthur thought it would be better to get him out of the way first, since he's the only one that applied for the position."

"It's a man?" Lucius asked surprised. There weren't many male seers out there.

"Yeah. Didn't you read the parchment Arthur gave us with an overview of the all candidates?"

Lucius blushed. "No. I was too tired to concentrate. I read some of them, the Cassidy woman, and the linguist Arthur told us about, but my brain wasn't taking the information in so I went to sleep."

"Ah. Is that why you already asleep when I came to bed last night?"

"Yes. Sorry. I had meant to wait up for you, but..."

Harry interrupted him. "It's fine. You aren't well, and I didn't mind. I was just curious."

"So what's he like?" Lucius asked.

"His name is Hezekiah Enu. He's thirty four, and has two Masteries. One in Divination, and one in Defence."

"I've never heard of anyone with that combination of Masteries before." Lucius mused.

Harry laughed. "That's probably because most seers are women like Trelawney."

"True." Lucius agreed. "So he's both a seer and a warlock?"

"Warlock?" Harry laughed again. "That's an old term for it, but yeah he is. Huh, I guess that means that I'm a warlock now too."

"Yes, you are Harry." Severus voice came from the door, and Lucius sat up quickly. "Not a particularly good one, however. You didn't even notice that I was here."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I noticed. My magic picked up your magical signature while you were still ten feet down the corridor, I just didn't think you were a danger."

Lucius turned so he was facing his mate. "You can do that? Notice and recognise other people's magical signatures from a distance?"

"Yes." Harry answered slowly. "I've always been able to do it. Though it's a lot stronger now. I have a range of over a hundred feet if I concentrate now."

"That's fascinating." Severus said as he sat beside Lucius. "Do you have to have previously met the witch or wizard to identify their magical signatures?"

Harry nodded and slid the coffee the had brought Severus across to the wizard. "To put a name to it, yes. But if a person I didn't know was to walk down the corridor and past that door, I would always remember their magical signature and would recognise it if I felt it again."

"That's amazing!" Lucius said excitedly.

"If you say so." Harry shrugged. "How are you Severus?"

"Irritated." Severus growled. "I went and spoke to that blasted centaur this morning."

"Firenze?" Harry asked.

"Yes. I thought that I should at least give him the option of taking the Divination job. He was cast out of his herd for taking the position after all." Severus said.

"And?"

"Oh he wants to stay, but he will only teach the astrology part of the course. He said that he, and I quote, 'will have nothing to do with the trivial human nonsense'. So now we have half of a Divination Professor, and we have to find another part time Professor. The Divination position is hardly a fully time position as it is, now that the class will only accept people with the gift. Damn Centaur!" Severus groused.

"I have an idea." Harry leaned forward in his chair. "I was going to suggest it anyway, but this will make it easier. If we hire this Enu Seer, he could run the Duelling Club. He has a Mastery in Defence after all. I don't think I'll have time to do it, what with teaching, introducing changes at the Wizengamot, and trying to get four estates in order."

"That's an idea." Severus mused. "He couldn't do it all on his own though, nobody could."

"Oh, I would still help." Harry said. "Professors like Charlie, McGonagall, Flitwick and you two would help as well. Enu could do all the organising though."

"That would work." Lucius said. "I don't think I could do much though. I won't have the energy. Where's Arthur? The first interview should be starting about now."

"He decided to wait to lead the first candidate in." Severus said.

"Really?" Harry grinned, swiping the last coffee of the table. "It would be inappropriate for him to drink coffee during the interview, I'll have to drink it for him."

"Coffee addict!" Lucius teased.

A few minutes later Harry sat up straight before vanishing the empty coffee cups. "They'll be here in a minute."

Lucius grinned. "That's incredibly helpful. Who is going to be the main interviewer?"

"Severus." Harry answered closing the doughnuts box and putting in on the floor. "He's the Headmaster."

"And why are the rest of us here?" Lucius asked. _Surely Severus didn't need three people to help him with the interviews._

"I'm here as the Head of the Board of Governors, also as a Faculty Member but I'm trying not to think about that." Harry answered. "You're here because you are both a School Governor and a Faculty Member, and Arthur is here because he's been the one in contact with them."

Lucius heard voices outside the door and sat up straighter.

Arthur came through first, followed by a large African man in deep purple robes. Arthur took his seat beside Severus and gestured for the other man to sit across from him.

When the man was seated Severus leaved forward with is elbows on the table. "Mr. Hezekiah Enu, I presume? I am Severus Snape, I am the Headmaster. You have met Lord Weasley. To my left is Lord Malfoy, he is both a School Governor and our Politics Professor and beside him is Duke Peverell who is the Head of Board of Governors."

"And the Magical Defence Professor." Lucius added.

Enu's eyebrows rose at that, and he nodded in greeting as he had done to the previous men.

Severus continued. "I understand that you have applied for the Divination Professorship. Is that correct?"

"Yes, Headmaster." Enu's voice was deep and rich and Lucius was amazed at how different this man was to Trelawny.

"It says here, that you have your Mastery in both Divination and Defence. That's a very unusual combination."

Enu smiled. "Yes, I know. I worked towards my Divination Mastery because I am a Seer. It would have been a waste of my gift to not have trained thoroughly to use it."

"And your Defence Mastery?"

"I very much enjoy Duelling." Enu said simply.

"If you prefer Duelling why are you applying for a job teaching Divination?" Severus asked.

"When I was a child, there was an elderly Seer who taught me everything she knew about Divination. She told me that I had been given a great gift, one that I could use to aid both myself and others, and that it was my responsibility to pass on the knowledge that she had given me." Enu paused. "By teaching your Divination class I can pass on the knowledge. Not just to one young seer, but to many."

Severus leaned back in his chair. "Hogwarts already has a part time Divination Professor, Firenze. But he is a centaur, and refuses to teach anything beyond the astronomy section of the subject. If we were hire you, you would be sharing classes with him."

Enu nodded. "That would be acceptable.

"We are planning on introducing a Duelling Club this year." Severus said. "As you would only be teaching part time, would you be interested in involving yourself with the club?"

"Yes. I would love to." Enu answered with a grin. "Who would I be working with?"

"Me, primarily." Harry said leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table. "As the Magical Defence Professor it is expected that I sponsor the club, but I have other responsibilities as well. Many of the other Professors, including Severus and Lucius, will also be involved."

"You are very young, Duke Peverell." Enu said. "I do not mean to imply that I doubt your abilities, I am merely surprised."

Harry smiled wryly. "I know that I am very young, my former classmates won't graduate from Hogwarts for another two years, but I am qualified. I have three Masteries, one of which is in Defence. I would be very interested to duel you before the school term starts."

Enu inclined his head. "I would like that very much, your grace."

"Thank you for meeting with us Mr. Enu." Severus said standing up. "We will get back to you in the next few days. If we hire you, I will need to know the book list for your class by Friday."

Everyone else around the table had stood after Severus, and Enu bowed slightly.

"Thank you. It was nice to meet you all."

When the seer had left the room every one sat down again and Lucius looked at the other men.

"What did you think?"

Severus nodded slowly. "He appears to be adequate."

"Very much so." Arthur agreed.

"Are we sure that he truly is a seer?" Harry asked. "Because I really don't want there to be any risk that he is another Trelawny."

Lucius laughed softly. "He's nothing like Trelawny. Even if he was a phoney, he would at least be an example of how seers aren't all insane."

"He isn't a fraud." Arthur said. "He really does have a Divination Mastery, and it is impossible to get one of them without being a seer. Also I contacted Seer Isadora and she vouched for him."

Lucius noticed that Harry looked relieved. The confirmation from the Head of the English Seer Guild seemed to have put his mind at rest.

"In that case, I liked him too." Harry said with a smile.

"Lucius?" Severus asked.

"I agree. He seems ideal for the position." Lucius told his friend.

"One down, many to go." Severus said.

"One position? Or one interview?" Lucius asked teasingly.

"Both."

The next interviewee had applied for the Muggle Studies position and it quickly became evident to everyone that she knew very little about the Muggle world. Within minutes Severus and Harry had sent the woman away in tears, and Harry had ordered food and drinks from the House Elves to keep them occupied until the next interview.

The next person they interviewed was better, he at least had a Mastery on the Muggle World, but when the third candidate for the Muggle Studies position walked through the door Lucius knew that she would end up being hired.

Georgiana Clarke was a short petite woman. She was dressed entirely in Muggle clothes and had an infectious smile. She was a muggleborn who had gotten her Mastery in Muggle Studies, and still spent a lot of time in the Muggle world. The minute she had left the room he turned to Severus.

"She's the one we should hire."

"I agree." Arthur said. "She has enthusiasm for the subject, and she actually knows about the subject which is a plus."

Severus scowled. "She smiles too much."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh yes. Let's choose not to hire the woman who is perfect for the job because Severus thinks she's too happy."


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

27-27-27

When Lucius and Harry arrived for the next set of interviews the following morning they found Severus and Arthur already in the room. After the greetings were over and done with, and the coffee had been distributed, Lucius leaned against Harry's shoulder tiredly.

"What's first, Arthur?"

"The Latin candidates and then the History candidates." Arthur said looking down at his parchment. "The first person should be here any minute now, she's the linguist."

There was a knock on the door and Lucius sat up straight, smoothing down his hair.

"Enter." Severus called imperiously.

The witch entered shyly and sat down across from them. Lucius was surprised at how young she seemed. She couldn't be older than twenty five, he had presumed that she would be at least thirty given the number of languages she claimed to be fluent in.

"Mrs. Katherine Lewis I presume." Severus said in a level voice.

"Yes, sir." The woman's accent was strange. Lucius had never heard an accent like it before.

"I am Headmaster Severus Snape. On my left is Lord Weasley, whom you have been in contact with, the men on my right are Lord Lucius and Duke Peverell."

Each of the men inclined their heads politely when they were introduced and Mrs. Lewis nodded in return.

"You have applied for the position as Latin Professor, have you not, Mrs. Lewis?" Severus asked smoothly.

"Yes sir. But please call me Katie."

Severus inclined his head. "As you wish. Your curriculum vitae claims that you have Masteries in four different languages. That is quite the achievement for someone of your age. What languages are those Masteries in?"

Katie smiled. "Well Latin, sir, obviously. Also Gobbledegook, French and English."

"English?" Lucius asked looking at the paper in front of him. "Why did you choose English?"

"I was raised in Greece, my lord, so English wasn't my first language."

"Are there any other languages you are fluent in?" Severus asked.

"Well, Greek." Katie said with smile. "Also Italian and German. I can speak and understand Mermish but I'm not exactly fluent yet."

"That is very impressive Katie." Arthur said with a smile. "Do you have any experience teaching?"

"A little bit. I have spent the last few years tutoring students, but I have only taught a full class a few times when I was covering for someone else." Katie blushed.

"You are married, are you not Katie?" Harry asked.

"Yes, your grace."

"What is it that your husband does?"

"Nothing at the moment, your grace." Katie answered. "He only recently finished his Mastery in History. He has been applying for jobs."

"Huh." Harry looked through the parchment on the table in front of him, before apparently finding the one he was looking for. "There is a Mr. Alistair Lewis who applied for the History position. Would that be your husband?"

Lucius barely prevented his eyebrows rising in surprise, he found his copy of Alistair Lewis' curriculum vitae and quickly skimmed through it. Hogwarts graduate, a Mastery in History, married.

"Yes, your grace." Katie smiled. "It seemed like an excellent opportunity for both of us."

Severus cleared his throat. "If hired, you would be expected to tutor students in languages other than Latin. Would you be willing to do so?"

Katie nodded. "Of course, sir. Would it be one on one tutoring or a group setting?"

"It depends on the level of interest, Mrs Lewis." Severus answered. "We are making many changes at Hogwarts this year and some things are rather experimental."

"Understandable, sir."

When Katie had left, Harry put his arm around Lucius, pulling him closer. Lucius laid his head on his mate's shoulder again and closed his eyes, listening to the conversation around him.

"I liked her." Arthur said. "She's young, but there is nothing wrong with that."

"She hardly has any teaching experience." Severus groused.

"She has plenty of teaching experience." Harry countered, rubbing a thumb against Lucius' shoulder. "Just not a lot of experience teaching large groups."

There was a sound of parchment being moved and then Severus's voice. "Who's next, Arthur?"

"Nobleman Lance Wright." Arthur said. "He has a Mastery in Latin, but I think it was more for interest than anything."

Lucius opened his eyes. "Nobleman Wright? Why would he apply for the job? His family is extremely well off for a Nobleman family."

"Do you know him Lucius?" Harry asked.

"Not very well." Lucius replied. "Though the Wright House is very respected among purebloods – particularly for one of it's rank – Lance has never really been interested in pureblood events. He only inherited his title a few years ago when his grandfather died."

"What do you know of him?" Arthur asked.

"He was always the black sheep of the family." Lucius answered. "Or white sheep as the case may be. Dumbledore's man through and through last I heard. His family was so disappointed."

"I never saw him at Order meetings." Severus said doubtfully. "Are you sure?"

Lucius nodded against Harry's shoulder. "Yes. Maybe Dumbledore kept him separate from the rest of you, in case something like this happened."

"So Dumbledore is trying to get one of his men hired then." Severus sighed. "Makes sense, he always did try and stack the staff with Order members and now that he's gone I imagine he wants as many of his people on the inside as he can get."

There was a knock on the door and Lucius sat up, this time it was Harry who smoothed down his hair.

"Are we giving him the benefit of the doubt?" Arthur asked. "Or just presuming that he's Dumbledore's man, and hiring Katie?"

"We'll do the interview like normal." Harry said. "Just bearing in mind that we think he's a spy."

"Come in." Severus called loudly.

The door opened and Nobleman Wright entered. He looked older than he had been the last time Lucius had seen him, he was probably about thirty five these days.

"Thank you for coming, Nobleman Wright." Severus said politely. "Please have a seat."

"Thank you, Headmaster." The Nobleman sat down.

"I am Headmaster Snape as I'm sure you are aware. You have already corresponded with Lord Weasley, he is here as one of the Governors. Lord Malfoy is both the Politics Professor and a School Governor, and Duke Peverell is the Magical Defence Professor and the Head School Governor."

Nobleman Wright inclined his head. "Thank you for granting me an interview, my lords, your grace."

Lucius inclined his head in reply. "I never thought I would see you applying for a teaching position, Nobleman."

The Nobleman laughed. "I could say the same to you, my lord. I never would have taken you for a teacher."

Severus cleared his throat. "It says here that you have a Mastery in Latin, Nobleman. Is that correct?"

"Yes. I completed my Mastery seven years ago."

"Why did you choose Latin as your Mastery?" Severus asked.

"I thought it would be interesting." Nobleman Wright said spreading his hands. "I was bored, and it looked fun. It wasn't, but it did help lessen the boredom."

Severus nodded and gestured subtly for Lucius to take over. Interviewing someone of higher rank than him put Severus in a tricky position, it would be easier for someone else to do it.

"Why did you apply for the job?" Lucius asked.

"As I said, it's been eight years since I finished my Mastery. I'm bored again. A few years teaching should be an interesting distraction." Nobleman Wright smiled charmingly.

Lucius felt like rolling his eyes. Did the man really expect to be given a job teaching children simply because he was bored? He'd heard enough. He would much rather hire Katie, who had an interest and passion for her subject, than someone who was trying to relieve his boredem.

"Do you speak any languages other than English and Latin, Nobleman?" Harry asked.

"Uh, well I know a few words in French."

The rest of interview went quickly and Lucius sighed a relief when he was gone.

"What an absolutely vapid man!" Harry groaned. "He wants the job because he's bored. We are a school that educates the next generation, not an babysitting centre for bored nobles."

"I take it that everyone prefers Katie?" Arthur asked.

"Absolutely." Severus said. "I refuse to let that man into my school."

"Do you want to hire Katie or continue looking?" Arthur asked.

"I think Katie is a great choice." Harry said. "But let's withhold our final judgement until after her husband's interview."

"Whose next?" Lucius asked.

"Potions Mistress Natasha Cassidy." Arthur read of his parchment. "Then we only have the two History candidates this afternoon and we're done."

"There's only one Potions candidate?" Lucius asked worriedly. "What if she's dreadful."

"She isn't." Severus said with a small smile. "Trust me, Natasha will be brilliant."

Lucius felt a hand on his neck and then his head was guided so he was looking at Harry.

"You alright, little one?" Harry asked softly. "Not too tired?"

Lucius smiled. "I'm fine. I'll just need to sleep a lot over the next few days."

Harry leaned forward and kissed him gently. "Alright."

There was a knock on the door and Lucius felt Severus elbow him. Harry smiled and leaned in for another kiss before releasing him and sitting up straight. Lucius smiled and leaned back in his chair, looking at the door.

"Come in." Severus called.

The woman who walked through the door was not at all what Lucius had been expecting. She was about thirty, and of normal height and build, but her hair was blue.

"Hey, Severus." Her accent was obviously American and the woman grinned at them.

"Hello, Natasha." Severus said with a small smile. "Have a seat."

"Thanks. Don't mind if I do." She threw herself onto the chair and sprawled herself out casually.

"Natasha, on my left is Lord Weasley, and Lord Malfoy and Duke Peverell are on my right. They are all School Governors, and Lord Malfoy and Duke Peverell are both Professors."

The woman sat up straighter. "Lords and a Duke? Really? Wow fancy that." She pointed at Harry. "You're kinda young to be a Duke, aren't you? Kinda young to be a teacher too now that I think about it."

"Yes, I am, Miss Cassidy." Harry said with a small smile. "I've gotten that quite a bit."

The woman grinned at him. "Call me Natasha. Everyone does."

Severus cleared his throat. "I'm going to ask you some basic questions, Natasha. I know the answers but the others don't, so we still need to go through them."

"All good." Natasha said with a grin, sprawling out again. "Fire away."

"When did you achieve your Potions Mastery?"

"Nine years ago." Natasha was still grinning happily.

"Why did you choose Potions?"

"Because I loved it in high school." She said leaning forward. "I attended Idaho School of Magic and fell in love with potions. All seven years at I.S.O.M, I was the top of my potions class and studying potions during my free time."

"And what have you been doing in the nine years since you achieved your Mastery?" Severus asked.

"Well, I've worked towards my Herbology Mastery part time. I'm almost finished. I taught at I.S.O.M. for three years, and at the O.C.A for a two years. Other than that I've just been making and experimenting with potions."

"O.C.A.?" Harry asked.

"The Oregon Creature Academy." She explained. "There are a lot of states in America that don't allow people with creature blood to attend their schools, the O.C.A is kind of a refuge for them."

"Did you go through a Creature inheritance then?" Arthur asked.

Natasha laughed. "No, I have some creature blood, my great grandmother was a werewolf, but not enough for me to have gone through an inheritance. I am a Metamorphmagus though."

Her hair changed from blue to purple and then back again.

Severus began questioning again. "Why did you apply for the Potions position here?"

"I miss teaching." Natasha said with a smile. "It's been two years since I last taught, and there are no available Potions positions in America at the moment."

"Thank you, Natasha." Severus said. "I think that is all we need. We will owl you by the end of the day with our decision."

Natasha nodded and moved to stand. "Thanks."

When she had left Harry looked around Lucius at Severus. "You were right Severus. She's fantastic. We absolutely have to hire her!"

Lucius nodded in agreement. "She certainly has the experience."

"Wonderful!" Arthur said with a grin. "Shall we have lunch?"

Thirty five minutes later Lucius was seething at the older man in front of him, a Mr. Abram Morrison.

"Head School Governor?" Morrison scoffed, "He doesn't look old enough to be out of school and you said that he's a Professor? Hogwarts really has gone to the dogs."

"_Duke Peverell_ is perfectly qualified to teach at Hogwarts, Mr. Morrison." Severus said coldly. "He has three Masteries, which is two more than you have."

"Impossible!" Morrison sneered. "Where is Dumbledore? He would put this boy in his place."

Lucius looked at Harry who was sprawled out in his chair arrogantly, though his eyes were hard.

"I'm that you will have read of Nobleman Dumbledore's arrest in the Daily Prophet, Mr. Morrison. Dumbledore is no longer employed by Hogwarts." Severus explained with a sneer. "And I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Morrison stood up angrily, ignoring his chair as it fell over behind him. "When Dumbledore is released he will hear about this travesty!" He stormed out and Lucius shut his eyes tiredly.

"Well." Arthur said after a moment. "That just leaves Mr. Lewis. I imagine that he will seem perfect after that interview."

Lucius smiled. "When is Lewis due to arrive?"

"Not for another ten minutes, but my parchment says that he is already here."

"You have a piece of parchment that tells you that?" Harry asked.

"The House Elves gave it to me." Arthur explained. "When someone arrives they tell me through the parchment. It's how they know when to lead a person here as well, I tell them through the parchment."

"Huh." Harry said sounding amazed. "Well have them bring Mr. Lewis through. I want to get this finished as quickly as possible."

"Yes." Severus agreed. "Please do."

Three minutes later there was a knock on the door. When it was opened a man in his thirties entered the room and looked at them.

"Good Afternoon."

"Have a seat, Mr. Lewis." Severus said.

Mr. Lewis sat down and smiled at them. "Thank you. Please call me Alistair."

"Very well." Severus nodded. "I am Headmaster Snape, the other men are Duke Peverell, Lord Malfoy and Lord Weasley. You have recently finished your Mastery in Magical History, is that correct?"

Alistair shook his head. "No, I received that Mastery five years ago, I just finished my Mastery in English Muggle History."

Severus nodded. "Do you have any experience teaching?"

"Yes. I spent the two years between finishing my first Mastery and starting my second one teaching History at the Magical Institute in the American state of Washington."

"Why did you leave?" Severus asked.

Alistair smiled. "I wanted to do a second Mastery. I found that a lot of Magical History is connected to Muggle History, it helps me understand it better if I know both."

"Thank you, Alistair." Severus said. "That will be all. We will owl you with our decision later in the afternoon."

Alistair looked shocked, probably due to the shortness of the interview, but stood up and bowed.

"Thank you, your grace, my lords, Headmaster."

When he had left the room Harry let out a soft laugh. "That was a bit quick, Severus."

Severus shrugged. "We're all tired, and he seemed ideal for the position. No point in wasting everyone's time asking more questions."

"So you want to hire him then?" Arthur asked. "Does that mean you will hire his wife as well?"

Severus nodded. "Yes. So this means that we have filled all the positions, correct?"

"Yes. I will send out the owls when I get home. And we're done." Arthur said with a grin, gathering up his papers.

"Finally." Severus groaned standing up. "Make sure they all know that I need their book lists by Friday."

"We still need to talk about who is going to be the Year Deans, and who will be the new Slytherin Head." Harry pointed out.

"Next week." Severus said with a scowl. "We can do that next week."

Harry grinned as he sat on the desk in his office. Lucius was due to come visit him any minute now. They were going out for dinner as a family, Charlie included, but Harry had something he wanted to do first. All of the Hogwarts letters had been sent, the article about his Lucius' bonding was ready to be published, as was the article announcing the faculty changes at Hogwarts. Dumbledore was still in Ministry custody and the majority of the wizarding public were outraged at the old man, instead of for him. For the first time in a few weeks Harry was feeling relaxed and ready to play.

There was a knock on the door and then Lucius came in, stopping when he saw where Harry was sitting.

"Brings back memories doesn't it, little one?" Harry asked. "The day I claimed you I was sitting like this when you came in."

Lucius smiled and moved forward so he was standing between Harry's legs. "Yes, Domine."

Harry groaned. "I love it when you call me that." He cupped Lucius' face in his hands and then kissed him. After a minute he broke off the kiss leaving Lucius panting. "How about you strip for me, little one?"

Lucius looked at him. "Now? We have to leave for dinner in fifteen minutes."

"Now, little one. We won't be late. I promise."

Lucius nodded and began to unbutton his robe. When the robe was unbuttoned he bent over to take off his shoes and socks, before standing up and removing the robe. Harry watched as Lucius blushed, obviously embarrassed to be naked in his office.

"You are always so beautiful Lucius." Harry said hopping off the desk and pressing up against Lucius for another kiss.

It was times like this that he hated being about a foot shorter than his mate. It would be much easier to dominate a kiss if his mate wasn't having to bend down to kiss him. Harry ran his hands over Lucius back, before moving his hands to knead his arse.

27-27-27

A sex scene used to be here. It can be found on AO3, the link is on my profile page.

27-27-27

Lucius smiled and then, catching sight of the clock Harry kept in his office, quickly put the robe on.

"We're going to be late!"

Harry laughed. "Only a few minutes. They won't even notice."

After checking that he looked normal in a conjured mirror, Lucius shot Harry a weak glare. "You promised that we wouldn't be late."

Harry grinned unrepentantly. "Sorry, I guess I got a little distracted." He moved forward for a kiss. "You just looked so beautiful, spread out on my desk like that, begging for me."

Lucius moaned and moved in for another kiss before, seemingly remembering himself, stepping back with another glare.

"We said we would be downstairs three minutes ago."

Chuckling, Harry grabbed hold of his mate's hand and moved towards the door. "Alright, alright, we're going."


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading and for all your reviews! This chapter is a thank you/reward for reaching 700 reviews! You guys are amazing!

28-28-28

The following morning Bill Weasley woke up to the smell of coffee. It wasn't that unusual, Percy – and Charlie when he was home for the weekend – were normally up before him, but what was unusual was the sound of Harry's voice. He pulled himself out of bed and into the shower, before venturing into his living room where Harry was talking to both his brothers.

"Morning, Bill." Harry said with a smile. "I brought you coffee, it's on the table."

Bill stared at him for a moment before moving towards the coffee. "What time is it?"

"Just after eight I think." Harry answered.

"Eight?" Bill moaned. "It's a Sunday. What in Merlin's name are you doing here this early on a Sunday?"

Harry chuckled. "It's not that early. I'm here because I'm expecting visitors, but I have no idea when they'll be here."

Bill took a large mouthful of coffee hoping that it would wake him up slightly. He really wasn't a morning person, but it was nice to see Harry so chirpy. His adopted little brother had seemed so exhausted and stressed over the last month, and he was glad to see everything seemed to be going back to normal.

"Visitors?" Percy asked curiously. "Why would anyone visit you here?"

Bill looked at his brother. "Harry's been here how long, and you didn't ask him why?"

Percy shrugged. "I knew he would tell me when I needed to know. He was just giving me the update of everything that has happened in the last week. Especially the Dumbledore situation."

"What visitors, Harry?" Charlie asked. "You said that you didn't have anything coming up."

"The article announcing mine and Lucius' bonding, as well as the one naming all the new Hogwarts' faculty, was published in the Daily Prophet today." Harry explained. "I'm here because Ron and Hermione are going to want a confrontation, and I'd rather it be here and now than at Hogwarts at the end of the month."

Bill stood up and grabbed his Daily Prophet from the table before sitting down again. He read through the articles quickly while listening to the conversation.

"But why here?" Charlie asked from his normal sprawled out position.

"Because as far as Dumbledore knows, and therefore they know, this is where I have been living. And it's not as though I can invite them into Malfoy Manor." Harry replied. "That would just be asking for trouble."

"Surely they'll figure out that you aren't actually staying here after reading the article about your bonding." Percy said.

Harry just raised his eyebrows challengingly.

"But Hermione's said to be the smartest witch of your generation." Percy protested.

"Book knowledge, possibly." Harry said. "But not in a practical sense."

Bill looked up from the newspaper. "They're nice articles. I especially like the part that says, Charles Weasley as Care of Magical Creatures Professor and Duke Harry Peverell as Magical Defence Professor. It even lists both of your qualifications. Three Muggle fighting Masteries, Harry? You never told us that."

Harry just rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

"The Divination Professor looks interesting." Percy said. "Dual Masteries in Defence and Divination. I don't think I have ever heard of anyone having achieved that combination."

"You've read it?" Bill asked.

"We both read it before Harry arrived." Charlie replied. "I was up for a run at six and Percy joined me."

"It's a Sunday!" Bill protested.

"Habit." Charlie said with a shrug. "I've been getting up at five for years now, six is a sleep in for me."

"And you, Perce?" Bill asked despairingly.

"You know I prefer to get up early." Percy pointed out. "And I enjoy running with Charlie. It's relaxing."

There was a loud banging on the door and Bill stood up. "I'll get it."

"Maybe we should go out for breakfast." Percy suggested. "Well, second breakfast for me and Charlie. Harry might appreciate the space for this conversation."

Charlie snorted. "No way. I wouldn't miss out on this this for anything. It'll be entertaining."

Harry was shaking his head. "Don't you dare leave me here alone with them."

Bill rolled his eyes and went to answer the door. When he opened the door he was unsurprised to see his youngest brother and his girlfriend standing there impatiently. Hermione's fingers were white from her tight grip on a copy of the Daily Prophet, and Ron's face was red.

"Good morning, Ron, Hermione." Bill smiled and leaned casually against the door frame. "I wasn't expecting to see you here this morning."

"Let us in, Bill!" Ron growled. "We want to see Harry."

Bill sighed and stepped back, holding the door open. "It's nice to see you too, little brother."

Ron ignored him and stormed through the house towards the sound of Harry and Charlie's laughter. Bill followed sedately, trying to reconcile this Ron with the one he remembered from ten years ago.

"What were you thinking Harry?" Hermione started shouting the second she entered the living room. "Lucius Malfoy? He's a Death Eater! He tried to kill me! He tried to kill Ginny! He tried to kill you! He's one of the people who is to blame for Sirius' death! Have you completely lost your mind?"

Bill rolled his eyes at Harry over Ron and Hermione's heads and gently pushed them out of the doorway.

"Would you like a seat?" He asked. "We were just discussing what we wanted to have for breakfast. Have you eaten yet?"

Ron looked at him incredulously. "Breakfast? Harry has bonded with a Death Eater! With Malfoy! And you're thinking about breakfast?"

Bill saw Charlie rolling his eyes as their brother's dramatics and stifled a grin. "Have a seat Ron. You too, Hermione. And please refrain from shouting in my house. "

Both the new arrivals huffed angrily, but obediently sat down on the couch.

The room was silent for a minute, before Hermione began again. Thankfully at a quieter volume.

"Is it true, Harry?"

"Yes." Harry said calmly. "I am bonded to Lucius."

"W-what?" Ron spluttered. "Are you completely and utterly mad!" He was shouting by the end of the sentence. "He's a Death Eater, mate, why would you do something so stupid?"

"Perhaps." Harry shrugged. "It isn't really any of your business why. All you need to know is that I love Lucius, and he loves me."

"You must be under a spell." Hermione said confidently. "Our Harry would never love a Death Eater. And a male one at that!"

Bill looked between Hermione and his brothers confusedly. What did Lucius being male have to do with anything?

Harry sighed. "Your muggle is showing Hermione. There is no prejudice against homosexuality in the Wizarding World."

The girl glared at him. "Our Harry isn't gay! And he certainly wouldn't marry a Death Eater! Don't you remember, Harry? Mr. Malfoy tried to kill you in second year. And he was the one who gave Ginny the Diary in second year. He was there in the Department of Mysteries. You even saw him when Voldemort was resurrected. You hate Mr. Malfoy."

"Lord Malfoy." Harry corrected. "And no I don't."

Hermione turned to look at Bill. "You're a curse breaker. Can't you see that he's cursed? Harry would never act like this!"

"He isn't cursed." Bill said, leaning against the door frame. "I tested him for all possible curses, and there are no spells on him." He sent Harry an apologetic look. He had done a check just after Harry had come to him explaining that You-Know-Who wasn't all that bad.

"Then why?" Hermione turned back to Harry. "Why would you do this?" She brandished the Daily Prophet. "This says that you have adopted both Malfoy and Nott. Is that true as well?"

Harry nodded. "Draco was automatically adopted when I bonded with Lucius, and we adopted Teddy. He's the Potter Heir now."

Ron stood up, his face purple. "How could you? He's a Death Eater Harry! They all are! And you're just giving them your money and titles? Have you even considered how you could help us, help Dumbledore with the war?"

Hermione grabbed Ron's hand and tugged him back down onto the couch. "It's alright Ron. At least he gave him the smallest House."

Harry ran a hand through his hair. "I didn't give it to him. I adopted him as my son, and made him my heir. The Heir to my Father's House. The one that is most important to me."

Ron threw his hands in the air. "But why? We've been best friends for five years, Harry! Why would you give your money to the ferret and a Death Eater loser instead of us?"

Bill stiffened in shock. Harry had told him about what Ron was really like, but it was different seeing it in person. He could see that both Percy and Charlie had narrowed their eyes at their brother, and Charlie had moved his feet off the table.

Harry looked furious. He sat forward in his chair and glared at Ron and Hermione. "My best friends? You've been my best friends? Really, Ron? Friends don't lie to one another! They don't try and hold their friends back! And they don't spy on their friends!"

"Wh-what?" Ron spluttered. "I never...I would never..."

"Don't lie to me!" Harry growled. "I know everything! I know how your Mum and Dumbledore instructed you to befriend me on the train. I know about your little reports you give to Dumbledore every Thursday! I know that you have done everything you could to ensure that you were my only friends! I know alright! I know!"

Hermione and Ron both stared at Harry in horror, she was the first to speak. "Harry, I..."

"Don't, Hermione!" Harry growled. "We all know that you never really my friend. We have all been pretending to be something we aren't. You have been pretending to be my friend, and I've been pretending that I didn't know the truth."

"But, how?" Hermione said angrily. "How could you possibly know those things? How could someone like Mr. Malfoy want you? How the hell did you manage to get three Masteries?" She waved the newspaper. "How? You aren't intelligent! You don't study! You're just an ignorant, lazy, idiot!"

Harry laughed. "Hermione. I just told you, I've been pretending! Playing a role to ensure that nobody knew anything about me until I wanted them to."

"You're a Death Eater!" Ron exclaimed, standing up and drawing his wand. "That's what this is all about isn't it? You've gone and joined You-Know-Who! Traitor!"

Harry laughed again. "Don't be silly, Ron. There are more than two sides in this war you know. Just because I don't worship Dumbledore like you do doesn't mean that I'm following Voldemort. Maybe I just don't trust a man who is currently imprisoned by the Ministry, awaiting trial. The man who left me on a Muggle doorstep, and then proceeded to pay people to be my friends."

Bill saw both Ron and Hermione flinch and hid a smile at Harry's manipulation. So they had been paid.

"So what?" Hermione asked, her wand in her hand. "You're just going to turn up at Hogwarts as a Professor? That's ridiculous! You're younger than most of the sixth years and all of the seventh years. They'll never listen to you! And I still don't believe that you really got three Masteries." She added.

Harry leaned back in his chair. "Yes, Hermione. That's exactly what I will do. And it doesn't matter whether or not you believe that I'm qualified. The Board of Governors have hired me, and I will do the job."

"The Board of Governors that both you and your Death Eater husband are on." Hermione scoffed.

"As I said, I don't care what you think. We aren't friends. We were never friends, and now we aren't pretending to be friends I see no reason to have anything to do with you. Hogwarts will either accept me as a Professor, or they will spend the rest of their school career in detention. I have the Board of Governor's support, the Headmaster's support, the Minister's support, and I am a Duke." Harry stood up. "Don't piss me off!"

Ron and Hermione stood as well, as did Charlie and Percy.

"Just you wait, Harry Potter!" Hermione warned. "Dumbledore will get out of prison! And when he does, you'll be sorry!"

Bill stepped forward. "Ron, Hermione, I think you should leave."

Ron spun around to glare at him. "You're choosing him over us? Over your own brother?" He turned to look at his other brothers in disbelief. "This is worse that you choosing Dad over Mum. Traitors!"

With that he stormed out of the house with Hermione close behind. Harry sat down and began to laughed. Bill stared at him.

"What?" Charlie asked.

"Nothing." Harry said calming down. "Just, wow, I am so glad that is over. And did you see their face when I called them out of their spying?"

Bill shook his head. "I know you had told us what they were like, and it wasn't that I didn't believe you. But..."

"It's hard to believe isn't it." Percy said quietly. "That little Ronny, our baby brother, has turned into that."

They all sat in silence for a few minutes before Harry spoke again.

"You're moving back to England on Friday, right, Charlie?"

Charlie nodded. "Yeah. I've been moving boxes of my things back over the last few weeks, so it won't be too much work."

"I presume that you will moving into Malfoy Manor with us?"

Bill almost laughed at Charlie's expression.

"Uh, as long as it's alright with you?" Charlie said uncertainly.

"Of course it is. I said you couldn't bond until you move back and I have no doubt that you are planning on bonding the first opportunity you have. And since I have no intention of allowing Draco to move out, I'm guessing you will want to move in."

Charlie blushed causing his brothers to laugh. "Ok."

"Also," Harry said. "Lucius and I have decided to hold a dinner to celebrate our bonding later this month. If you and Draco aren't opposed to the idea we could make it a joint dinner and celebrate your bonding as well."

"I'll talk to Draco." Charlie said.

Harry stood up. "Good. Could you do it today please? Dinner parties take time to plan, or so Lucius has been telling me." He looked at Bill. "I should be off, but thank you for allowing me to invade your home this morning. It was lovely to see you all."

Charlie stood up as well. "Are you heading home? Because if you are, I'll come too."

"Ah, young love." Bill rolled his eyes and ducked Charlie's swipe at his head. "Go on. Have a good afternoon with your mates."

28-28-28

Five days later Draco was standing in the Entrance Hall waiting impatiently. The moment Charlie apparated into Malfoy Manor, Draco ran towards him and threw himself into his mate's arms. When he was caught, he wrapped his legs around Charlie's waist and dove in for a kiss. It had been five days since they had seen each other, and he had missed the larger man.

"Happy to see me then?" Charlie teased, before nuzzling at Draco's neck.

"Always!" Draco replied. "I missed you."

"Missed you too." Charlie admitted. "But I'm back for good now. No more separation required."

Draco tightened his legs around Charlie's waist and leaned in for another kiss.

"Hello, Charlie." His Père's amused voice came from behind him. "I'm glad you're finally back for good."

Draco released his legs and wiggled down. He turned towards his Père, and smiled when Charlie's arms wrapped tightly around him – keeping Draco against his front.

"Thanks." Charlie said with a grin. "I'm thrilled to be back."

Draco grinned as Charlie pulled him even closer, his larger mate bending down to kiss his neck.

"I bet you are." His Père sighed long-sufferingly, but he was smiling. "I imagine that Draco is rather anxious to show you your room, so I'll let you go. Remember that you are both expected to be in the Dining Hall for dinner at eight, Draco. Don't be late."

Draco looked up at his mate as his Père left the room. "He's right. I am anxious to show you our rooms." He grabbed one of his mates hands and led him out of the Entrance Hall. "Père and Father moved me out of my room and into the suite that is traditionally for the bonded Heir. Apparently since I will be bonded soon, it makes it easier and means that you don't have to move twice.

"Bill and Père organised for all your belongings to be delivered here this week, and the House Elves have already unpacked for you." Draco looked up at his mate who was walking beside him. "You don't mind, do you?"

Charlie was smirking. "Not at all, my little mate. They were right you know. You will be bonded soon, very very soon."

Draco blushed.

28-28-28

Lucius was trying to write lesson plans for the fifth year Politics class when the Floo chimed and Severus stepped through. Severus immediately began pacing Lucius' office while Lucius watched, amused. After a few minutes Severus stopped pacing next to the fireplace and then fire called Rodolphus. Lucius stood up and started to pour three glasses of firewhisky. It wasn't often that Severus got like this, in fact the last time it had happened was four years ago, but when it did happen firewhisky was normally needed. Lucius levitated the glasses over to the table between his armchairs and then sat down near them to wait on his friends.

It was only a few minutes later that Severus stood up and, brushing ash off his robes, moved to sit beside Lucius.

"Firewhisky?" Lucius asked.

"Merlin, yes. Thank you."

The Floo chimed again and this time Rodolphus stepped through. Lucius made a mental note to remember to lock down his Floo if he and Harry ever ended up having sex in his office.

Rodolphus sat in the third armchair and grabbed the remaining glass before turning to Lucius. "Good morning, Luc."

Lucius smiled. "Good morning, Rodol. He turned to Severus. "What's going on, Sev? What happened?"

Severus knocked back his firewhisky and put his glass on the table before putting his head in his hands.

"I fucked him, well technically he fucked me, but still. I fucked a student, ex student. Oh Merlin!"

Lucius stood up and tried to stifle his laughter and locked eyes with Rodolphus for a moment.

"Let me get this straight." Rodolphus said, sounding like he was holding back laughter too. "Last night you got drunk, and this morning you woke up and realised that you had been fucked by one of your students?"

"Ex-students." Lucius corrected for Severus' sake.

"Right." Rodolphus sounded strained. "Ex-students." He burst into loud laughter. "Oh Merlin, I never thought that I would see the day."

Severus glared at Rodolphus, but Lucius could see his lips twitching.

"How old exactly was this ex-student?" Rodolphus asked, still laughing. "Are we talking eighteen? Nineteen?"

"Twenty eight." Severus replied. "He is twenty eight."

"Then he's hardly at ex-student Severus." Lucius tried to reason. "He hasn't been your student for ten years. It's not as though you used your position to manipulate him into it and then stole his innocence."

"No." Rodolphus said as he started to laugh again. "If anything, it sounds as though he stole _your_ innocence."

"Oh fuck off, Rodol." Severus said slightly petulantly.

"Alright." Lucius said. "What are upset about? That you had sex with an ex-student? That you were the one on the bottom? The identity of the student? That you can't remember what happened? What?"

"I remember." Severus defended. "I wasn't _that _drunk."

"So what has you in this tizzy?" Rodolphus asked. "Was it terrible?"

"No." Severus said with a slight blush. "It wasn't terrible."

"So what are you upset about?" Rodolphus asked. "It's not like you've never had sex before, or even sex with a near stranger before."

"I..." Severus broke off.

Rodolphus' expression became suddenly gleeful. "You liked it." He crowed. "That's what has you all worked up about it. Not only did you have sex with an ex-student – you liked it! And want to do it again!"

Severus glared at Rodolphus but his blush gave him away.

"So who was it?" Rodolphus asked.

"Bill Weasley." Severus admitted a bit reluctantly.

"Huh." Rodolphus stared at him for a moment. "I didn't see that one coming. A Weasley? Lucius is bonded to an almost Weasley, you're sleeping with one, Draco is bonded to one as well. They're taking over the world, one relationship at a time."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "What happened Sev? I knew that you and Bill got along well, you were always talking at the dinners we held. But what happened last night?"

Severus stood up and grabbed the Firewhisky bottle before sitting down again. He poured himself another glass and then leaned back in his chair.

"I had just finished buying some new robes in Diagon Alley when I met Bill. He had just finished work and invited be to get a drink with him." Severus took a gulp of his drink. "I agreed. We ended up getting dinner too, and then we talked for hours. One thing led to another and we ended back at his place, both a little drunk. I stood up to leave but I stumbled slightly and ended up kissing him, and he kissed back."

"And this morning?" Lucius asked curiously.

"I woke up with a hangover." Severus said. "He brought me coffee and a hangover potion. We talked a little and he asked me to go out with him next week."

Lucius' eyebrows rose. Bill had asked Severus out?

"And you don't want to go?" Rodolphus asked sounding confused. "But you liked it?"

Severus shrugged. "I did. And I like him. But, Merlin, I used to teach him."

"Ten years ago." Lucius pointed out. "That's a long time."

"I know." Severus put his head in his hands again and Lucius couldn't hide his smile. It wasn't often that he got to see Severus this unsure or emotional.

"It's because you were the one being fucked isn't it." Rodolphus said suddenly. "You think it's weird that you like being fucked by someone you used to teach. And you know that if you get into a relationship with him, he would protect you and you would like it."

"Yes." Severus exclaimed. "Exactly!"

Lucius shook his head. "Don't worry about that, Sev. There is nothing wrong with wanting to be bottom to, or even be protected by someone younger than you. Merlin, Harry is two months younger than Draco, but it doesn't make a difference."

Severus let his head fall back against the chair. "I know. It's just hard."

"So you're going to date him?" Rodolphus asked.

"Yes. I think so." Severus said with a small surprised smile. "If Lucius can bond with Harry Potter, I suppose I can go on a date with Bill Weasley."

Lucius smiled happily at his friends. "Since you're both here, would you like some scones?"


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Your reviews are, as always, amazing! Thank you so very much. Unfortunately I won't be giving out reward chapters for reviews anymore. I've been having problems getting this story written, and as such I am currently only three chapters ahead of what I'm posting.

Thanks for reading

29-29-29

"It is nice to meet you again, Professor Enu." Harry greeted the Divination Professor. "Congratulations on the new job."

The other man, who was at least a foot taller than Harry, inclined his head in greeting. "Thank you Duke Peverell, it is nice to see you again also."

"Call me Harry. No need for too much formality now that we are working together."

"Then you must call me Hezekiah."

"I will, thank you." Harry smiled slightly.

"Is it awkward for you?" Hezekiah asked, gesturing to the room of Hogwarts Professors. "I understand that most of these people were your instructors last year."

"A little." Harry admitted. "I think that it probably stranger for them. I'm not entirely sure how it will work, it was one of the reasons I didn't want to accept the position."

"Oh?" Hezekiah looked down at Harry. "Yet you changed your mind?"

"I was coerced." Harry said with a laugh. "Almost every one of my friends thought that I should, and in the end one of them made a deal with me. If my O.W.L. results fulfilled certain requirements I would become a Professor, and if they didn't nobody would mention it again. As you can see, I lost."

"Do you not feel that you are capable of the position?"

"Oh, I know that I am capable." Harry replied. "I just didn't think it was worth the effort of convincing my students and colleagues of that fact."

Hezekiah nodded understandingly.

"Mr. Potter!"

Harry turned at the sound of Professor McGonagall's voice. He wasn't sure how to handle his former Head of House. Severus had assured him that he had talked to her and explained all of the decisions that the Governor's had made – including his employment – but just because it had explained, didn't mean that she was convinced.

He inclined his head at the Transfiguration Professor. "Professor McGonagall."

"Oh, I apologise." She said with smile. "I did mean to call you Duke Peverell, or would you prefer Professor Peverell? I'm afraid it is taking me some time to adjust to everything."

Harry smiled. "Please call me Harry, Professor. And I do understand, it can be hard to rearrange one's view on the world."

"Well then, you must call me Minerva." The older woman said. "Congratulations on your Masteries. I could scarcely believe it when I read about your Mastery in Transfiguration, you are just so very young, but Severus assured me that it was true."

Harry laughed. "I don't blame you. I know that I never showed any real talent for the subject in your class." He looked around the room for his mate. "If you'll excuse me, Minerva, I need to speak to Lucius."

Minerva nodded. "Of course."

Harry moved across the room towards his mate and pulled him out of a conversation with Septima Vector, the Arithmacy Professor.

"I just had the weirdest conversation with Professor McGonagall." He said quietly, once he had cast a muffling spell. "She even asked me to call her Minerva. I thought that she would at least protest a little, she was my Head of House for five years and has always been Dumbledore's woman."

Lucius chuckled. "I think Severus had something to do with it. He met with all of the current Professors and showed them the evidence against Dumbledore."

Harry looked at his mate with narrowed eyes. "How do you know? Better yet, why don't I know?"

"Sev told me and Rodol at our bonding dinner." Lucius explained. "I'm sorry, I must of forgotten to mention it."

Harry nodded in understanding. "That explains her not being furious over Dumbledore being fired, but not why she's so accepting of me working here."

"Sev held the meeting after the Daily Prophet article announcing the new Professors. Apparently there were a lot of complaints to begin with, but by the time he had clearly laid out our qualifications they were convinced."

Harry knew he probably looked disbelieving. "What? All of them? Just like that?"

Lucius nodded. "Well, I'm sure that they will be watching you closely. But there won't be any more arguments, and Sev said that he made it quite clear that you were to be treated the same as any new Professor would be."

"Huh." Harry looked across the room at Severus who was scowling at the door. "I'll have to say thank you."

At that moment Professor Babbling, the Ancient Runes Professor burst through the door, and Severus glared at her.

"Alright everyone." Minerva called. "We're all here, take your seats please."

The wizards and witches quickly found their seats around the massive round table in the centre of the table. Harry ended up sitting next to Lucius who was sitting beside Severus. He smiled as his son-in-law – and he still hadn't gotten used to that idea – sat on his other side.

"Quiet!" Severus snapped at the tables occupants, and Harry had to hide a smile. He had spent so much time with the dour man in friendly situations that he had forgotten Severus' usual temperament.

"Good afternoon." Minerva said. "We have a lot to go through today, but first I would like to introduce the new Professors. We have seven new staff members. Charlie Weasley is taking over from Hagrid as the Care of Magical Creatures Professor. Hagrid will still be employed as Grounds Keeper, but the Governors wanted the C.O.M.C. Professor to have a Mastery related to the subject.

"Alistair Lewis is the new History Professor, and his wife, Katherine Lewis, will be teaching the newly introduced Latin class. She will also be offering to tutor students in other languages. Duke Harry Peverell – most of us know him as Harry Potter – is teaching both Magical and Muggle Defence. Harry will also be involved in the running of a Duelling club, along with Hezekiah Enu who has two Masteries, one in Divination and one in Defence. He is Sybill's replacement.

"Lord Lucius Malfoy will be teaching the new Politics class, as well as a compulsory Introduction to the Magical World for muggle-raised First Years. Natasha Cassidy is Severus' replacement. And finally Georgiana Clarke is the new Muggle Studies teacher. She will also be teaching a compulsory Introduction to the Muggle World class for magically-raised First Years."

"Thank you, Minerva." Severus was still scowling. "Next I would like to discuss the Deans. Does everyone have at least some understanding as to what they are?"

Harry watched as the Professors all nodded.

"Good. The Deans haven't been chosen, as it was thought best to allow you the opportunity to volunteer for the positions." Severus stopped and glared at everyone. "Well? Who's volunteering?"

Harry almost laughed, Severus was hilarious.

"I would be willing to be a Dean, Severus." Madame Hooch said with a grin. "I'll take the Fourth Years."

"I'll take the Seventh Years." Vector said.

"I could be the Sixth Years Dean." Natasha grinned.

Nobody else volunteered and Severus' scowl deepened. "I need four more, and Minerva, Filius, Pomona, and Lucius can't do it because they are the Heads of the Houses." He looked around the table again. "Fine! Katherine and Alistair, you will both be the Second year Deans. Charlie you will take the Third years, Aurora you will take the Fifth years. Georgiana you can take the First Years."

"Not wanting to be difficult, Severus." Hooch started. "But why do the Second Years get two Deans?"

"Yeah." Harry said with a smirk. "If you're pairing together bonded couples shouldn't I be a co-head of Slytherin House?"

Severus' glowered Harry and then Madame Hooch. "The Second Years have two Deans because they are a particularly large and difficult year. There are twelve more Second Years than there are Fifth Years, and at least eight more than any other year."

Harry nodded, still smirking, and then moved to whisper in Lucius' ear. "I never asked. Why are you Head of Slytherin and not Sinistra? Shouldn't she have seniority?"

Lucius nodded. "Technically yes, but she refused. There's a reason she isn't a Dean. She told Sev that if he put her in that kind of position she would resign."

Harry raised his eyebrows. That was horribly uncooperative of the Astronomy teacher. Though now that he thought about it, she had probably been the least social Professor in all his years at the school. The only time she was seen outside of her class was at the Formal Feasts.

"We have a few bonded couples among this years students." Minerva said. "Draco Malfoy is bonded to Charlie Weasley." She gestured at the Care of Magical Creatures Professor. "And Lord Neville Longbottom, who is Sixth Year, bonded to Fred and George Weasley last week. Mr. Malfoy will be staying in Charlie's quarters, Lord Longbottom will be staying in Misters Weasley's private room in the Seventh Years dorm."

Flitwick looked startled. "I wasn't aware that the Weasley twins were still enrolled at Hogwarts, Minerva."

Severus scowled. "Don't we all wish that were true. However, the twins have decided to start their Seventh Year from scratch."

Harry and Charlie shared a smirk, if only the twins knew just how much of a reputation they had managed to attain at Hogwarts.

29-29-29

Charlie looked around one of the many living rooms in Malfoy Manor. It was the last night before Hogwarts and Blaise, Rodolphus, Severus and Bill had been invited to dinner. He wasn't sure why Bill had been invited, but his brother was currently in a seemingly fascinating conversation with Severus. Lucius and Rodolphus were in a corner of the room talking, and Teddy and Blaise were talking to Harry.

"I don't get it." Charlie said to Draco as he watched Blaise bow to Harry.

Draco, who was lying on the couch with his head in Charlie's lap, followed his gaze. "What don't you get?"

"If Harry's a Duke, and Blaise is a Duke, why does Blaise always defer to Harry? Shouldn't they be equals?"

Draco shook his head. "Sometimes I forget how little you know about pureblood etiquette." He looked up at his mate. "And I don't mean that as an insult, it's just that you weren't raised to know these things automatically. Your Mother's fault probably."

Charlie ran a hand through Draco's hair, ignoring the smaller man's protests. "So explain it to me."

"Well firstly, even though they're all Archaic and Royal, both the Peverell and Gryffindor Houses outrank the Zabini House."

Charlie frowned. "Wait, so there's an official ranking? Is it the same with Ancient and Noble Houses? How are the rankings decided?"

"All noble families are ranked." Draco explained. "Even the Aged and Aristocratic ones. And the rankings haven't changed since the British Wizarding Monarchy fell, because the power could only be given and taken away by the King. Of course it's all very meaningless these days, only the traditional purebloods, like us, put any significance in it."

"How do the rankings go?" Charlie asked.

"Uh," Draco frowned thoughtfully. "I haven't had to remember this since I was twelve. Peverell is definitely at the top, that's why Père chose Duke Peverell to be the title he is known by. Then Slytherin, Bloodworth, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Winbow, Zabini, and the last Archaic House is Hufflepuff."

"I haven't ever heard of half of those."

"Well there are no known Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff descendants left. The entire Bloodworth House moved to America, and the Winbow's were completely obliterated by Grindelwald. Do you want to know all the Ancient Houses rankings too?"

Charlie narrowed his eyes. "How many Ancient Houses are there?"

"Twenty two." Draco answered. "Though seven of those aren't around any more."

"Just the highlights then." Charlie decided.

"Well Black, then Malfoy, then some of the ones that aren't important, Weasley, Longbottom, Lestrange, other unimportant ones, Parkinson, Potter, and more unimportant ones."

"What about Kirke? Our new Chief Warlock?"

"The House of Kirke is third. Just below us Malfoys." Draco grinned cheekily. "You know, maybe you ought sit in on Father's Politics class, he will be going into all this in detail." He looked seriously at his mate. "As my dominant mate, you will be the next Lord Malfoy, you need to know all of this."

Charlie was shocked. "But Harry isn't Lord Malfoy, your Father is."

Draco rolled his eyes. "How can you not know this?"

Growling, Charlie tugged gently on Draco's hair. "Don't be disrespectful, Draco. You know exactly why I don't know these things."

Draco bared his neck. "Sorry, Charlie. Officially Père is Lord Malfoy, but because he is already the Head of four other Houses – two of which are superior to the House of Malfoy – Father is allowed to be the de facto Lord. Père can still overrule any of Father's decisions, or take back control of the House at any time, but this way he doesn't have to be actively in charge of five Houses.

"Père is Duke Peverell, and Duke Gryffindor, and Lord Black, and Lord Potter, and Lord Malfoy. Whereas Father is Consort Peverell, and Consort Gryffindor, and Consort Black, and Consort Potter, and Consort Malfoy. But they had to choose one title to be the one that they are known as and Père chose Duke Peverell for him and Lord Malfoy for Father."

"But you just said that your Father is Consort Malfoy, not Lord Malfoy." Charlie said feeling confused. Pureblood things were always so complicated.

"He is." Draco explained patiently. "But, because Father is the de facto Lord and Père has more prestigious titles, Father is allowed to use the Lord Malfoy title."

Charlie nodded slowly. "But we won't be able to do that because we only have the one House between us?"

"Essentially yes."

Charlie let his head fall back against the couch. "Fuck. I'm going to be a Lord one day."

Draco sniggered.

Looking around the room, Charlie noticed that Blaise was still talking to Harry. He looked back down at Draco. "You never finished answering the question, mate of mine."

Draco just looked confused.

"About why Blaise is so respectful to Harry."

"Oh." Draco pulled himself upright, and sat on Charlie's lap. "So as I said, part of it is that the House of Peverell is more powerful than the House of Zabini. But there are other factors too. Blaise follows the Dark Lord, and the Dark Lord has declared Père his equal. Also Père is incredibly powerful, and so Blaise is wary of angering him.

"When it comes down to it, the only people who are allowed to call any Duke by their first name are those he invites too. Blaise asked Père to call him Blaise, Père didn't return the favour."

Charlie frowned in Harry's direction. "Isn't that rude?"

"No. Despite the fact that technically Harry is our age, in reality he is more Father's age. Do you ever talk to Harry, or see him talking to other people, and forget that he's not your age or older?"

Charlie nodded. "All the fucking time." He winced as Draco poked him in the side, he really needed to stop swearing. He had been informed by Harry, Lucius and Draco that he was a Malfoy now, and that Malfoy's didn't swear.

"You saw him and Father talking to people at our join Bonding Dinner. Who acts older out of the two of them?"

"Harry does."

"Precisely." Draco said with a satisfied nod. "And because he as the power – both magical and political – to back it up, among purebloods he will be seen as at least as old as Father."

"Besides with Blaise there's the extra factor of Père being one of my and Theo's parents, and our dominant parent at that."

"So," Charlie said. "You're saying that because Harry's unbelievably powerful in every way and acts like he's middle aged, in pureblood circles he pretty much is middle aged?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Well yes. If you take what I said and then translate it into its simplest form."

Charlie pinched Draco's side in rebuke. "Cheeky." He thought for a minute. "So Harry won't have as much trouble being accepted as a Professor as he thinks he will then."

"Not from the purebloods at least. The First through to Fourth Years won't challenge him at all, and in the upper years only the muggleborns and blood-traitors will have trouble accepting it."

Charlie leaned his head back._ Fuck! He was going to be a Lord. _Except he would only be a Lord after Harry died and Harry was younger than him. He grinned in relief.

"What are you grinning about?" Draco asked.

Charlie smiled lazily at his mate. "I just realised that I probably won't end up being a Lord after all?"

"How do you figure that?"

"Harry will be Lord Malfoy until he dies, and he's younger than me." Charlie explained happily.

Draco laughed. "Actually, Père has already told Teddy that he will probably step down as Lord Potter sometime in the next few years. He'll probably do the same with his Malfoy title."

Charlie could feel his smile disappear. "He can do that?"

"Uh huh." Draco was smirking.

"But wouldn't that leave your Father without a title?" Charlie knew that he was grasping at straws.

"Of course not." Draco scoffed slightly. "As Consort Peverell he will be much more respected than he ever was a Lord Malfoy."

"Damn." Charlie glared playfully as his mate began to softly laugh at him.

29-29-29

Harry was in the middle of a friendly duel with five of Tom's Death Eaters when he felt the older wizard's magical signature behind him. A few minutes later, when he had knocked all his opponents unconscious and then revived them, Harry made his way over to where Tom was leaning lazily against the door frame.

"Good morning, Tom. What are you doing here?"

Tom quirked an eyebrow. "This is _my_ manor, you do remember that – don't you? What are _you_ doing here?"

Harry shrugged. "I just thought I would have one last proper duel before I am due at Hogwarts."

"Proper duel?" Tom began to stroll towards his office and Harry fell into step beside him. "Harry you didn't even break a sweat. If you wanted a proper duel all you had to do was ask."

Harry shrugged again, the man did have a point. "I'll take you up on that next time. Five of your Death Eaters and it only took me seven minutes to beat them. They didn't even manage to land a single curse on me."

"Poor little Harry." Tom mocked. "Too powerful for his own good. I heard that you are planning on duelling the new Divination Professor, won't that be like taking candy from a baby?"

"I duelled him two days ago." Harry replied. "He isn't bad. No where near our level, of course. But then who is? It was the best one on one duel I've had, besides our one."

Harry followed Tom into his office and took his usual seat. The other wizard ordered tea. When they were both sipping on a drink, Harry looked across at Tom.

"How did your meeting with Madame Bones go?"

"Very well." Tom said. "She wouldn't meet me until I had sworn an unbreakable oath that I wouldn't hurt her though."

"Well, you _are_ the Dark Lord." Harry pointed out dryly.

"Yes, quite. I can't believe little Mel is the Head of Magical Law Enforcement. Sometimes it feels like last week that I was still helping her with homework, and now she's all grown up."

Harry tapped his finger against a biscuit. "Did you manage to convince her of your sanity?"

"I had to tell her about the horcruxes, but yes she did believe me in the end. She has agreed to help me bury Voldemort once and for all."

"And do you have a plan?" Harry asked curiously.

"The sighting of me at the Department of Mysteries will be revealed as a hoax." Tom explained. "Voldemort has been dead for sixteen years, why change that now? I will then be introduced to society as Duke Slytherin."

29-29-29

Draco sighed as he looked out the Hogwarts Express' window, ignoring the conversation around him. Every year he, and the eight other Slytherins in his year, commandeered a compartment of their own to show a united front. Unfortunately, this meant that every year he had to listen to the girls post-summer gossip session for hours, and this year wasn't any better. He sighed again and tuned back into the conversation.

"I wonder who the new DADA Professor will be." Tracey Davis asked absently. "Whoever they are, the can't be any worse than Umbridge was."

Draco turned to stare incredulously at his year mate. "You aren't serious, Tracey. I know that you were in Spain for the summer, but did you not read the Daily Prophet while you were away?"

"I was in Spain, Draco!" Tracey said as though that explained everything. "In any case, I knew that you would be able to inform me of anything important that I missed." She looked around the compartment at her year mates, all of whom were wearing disbelieving expressions. "So, I take it I missed something then."

"Oh Merlin, yes." Pansy Parkinson said. "I can't believe you missed it. It was, like, the Daily Prophet's most exciting summer ever, and it was all based around Draco's family."

Draco, along with Blaise, Teddy and Daphne, rolled his eyes. He had no idea how either of those girls had made it into Slytherin, though now that he thought about it, it probably had something to do with their ambition to be trophy wives.

"Well?" Tracey looked at Draco. "Tell me what happened."

"It started with Harry Potter." Pansy Parkinson said.

"Of course it did." Tracey said scathingly. "Our entire world seems to revolve around that little halfblood."

Draco growled angrily, and Tracey looked at him in confusion.

"What's up with him?"

"And this is why you should keep up with the Daily Prophet." Millicent Bulstrode said grumpily. "How about you sit quietly and listen before you offend anyone else."

"Fine." Tracey huffed.

"As I was saying." Pansy said. "It started with Harry Potter. He came of age over the summer, and..." She paused dramatically. "Turns out that he inherited some extra Houses."

Millie took over the explanation. "He's now the Head of the the Archaic and Royal House of Peverell, and the Archaic and Royal House of Gryffindor, and the Ancient and Noble House of Black, and the Ancient and Noble House of Potter. But that last one wasn't really a surprise."

"Oh Morgana!" Tracey exclaimed loudly. "You can't be serious. Potter's a Duke? A Duke?"

"And it gets better." Blaise said wiggling his eyebrows. "That's probably the least shocking piece of news."

"Well?" Tracey looked around. "Come on, tell me!"

"Duke Peverell, that's the name he goes by now, and Lord Malfoy got bonded over the summer." Daphne said.

Tracey squealed. "You can't be serious! Oh Morgana! Really?" She looked at Draco. "Your Father is bonded to Harry Potter?"

Draco rolled his eyes at her.

"Duke Peverell." Blaise corrected. "Trust me Trace, you don't want to piss him off. He's not the guy we all thought he was. He's scarier than Lord Malfoy."

"Really?" Tracey looked disbelieving at him. "Is there anything else."

Pansy said excitedly. "We've barely scratched the surface. After Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy bonded, Duke Peverell adopted both Draco and Teddy, and they actually act like Father and son."

"You've never actually seen them together." Millie said, as Tracey looked at Draco and Teddy sceptically.

"Yes I have." Pansy said. "I saw them in Diagon Alley."

"Why didn't you come and say hello?" Teddy asked.

"Well I was going to." Pansy said. "But then that reporter tried to talk to your family, and...well..."

Draco laughed. His Père had been so furious that the reporter had interrupted their shopping trip that he had reduced the poor man to tears.

"What happened?" Tracey asked.

Pansy shuddered slightly. "Lets just say that I think I would rather face the Dark Lord angry, than Duke Peverell."

"What else?" Tracey asked.

"Dumbledore has been fired." Teddy answered. "The Board of Governors fired him, and hired Professor Snape as his replacement in the same day. He's been charged with Criminally Negligent Manslaughter and is currently being held in a Ministry cell, waiting for his trial."

"How did I miss all this?" Tracey asked. "And how did they manage to do that? Lord Malfoy's been trying for years."

"Duke Peverell." Blaise replied. "It was amazing, he had almost the entire Board in his pocket. In the end it was only Nobleman Diggory who voted against it."

"All of them?" Tracey looked around the compartment. "But Potter loves Dumbledore. He's Dumbledore's Golden Boy. Are you sure you're not playing a trick on me?"

"Didn't you read your Hogwarts letter?" Draco asked. "There was a piece of parchment that explained a lot of this."

Tracey shook her head. "No. They always say the same things. I just read the booklist. Why? What else is there?"

"Well Duke Peverell has made a lot of changes to Hogwarts." Blaise said. "Robes aren't compulsory anymore except for the Formal dinners, like tonight."

"There are a lot of new classes, and Professors." Millie added.

"Even the sorting has changed." Daphne said. "First Years don't get sorted until their Second Year, and everyone gets sorted again in Fifth Year. Only this year the Second Years and Sixth Years are going to be resorted as well. And Seventh Years have their own common room and dorms."

"We're getting resorted?" Tracey asked. "Oh Merlin. What else?"

"Nobleman Shacklebolt has replaced Fudge as Minster of Magic." Teddy said. "And Lord Kirke is the new Chief Warlock."

Tracey waved a hand dismissively. "I don't follow politics Teddy, you know that. Is that everything?"

Millie laughed. "Not even close. Longbottom came into his inheritance too, and he's a Lord now. But we knew that would happen. What we didn't know as that he would bond with the Weasley twins, who are apparently Idem Gemini."

"The Weasel's father divorced his mother over the summer." Blaise said smugly. "Then he accept the Weasley Lordship."

"Draco bonded over the summer too." Teddy said with a smirk. "To Charlie, the second oldest Weasley son."

"And Blaise is now formally courting Teddy." Draco returned.

"Really? Oh congratulations Teddy! Blaise! Oh and you too Draco." Tracey said excitedly. "How will you see your bonded while you're at Hogwarts though?"

"Charlie's the new Magical Creatures Professor." Draco answered. "I'll be staying in his rooms."

"Ooh, that's so exciting." Tracey gushed. "Who are the other new Professors? Do we know any of them?"

"Father is teaching the new Politics class." Draco offered.

"We don't know the new Potions Professor." Millie said. "We don't know the new History or Latin Professors either, but I think they're related."

"They're married." Teddy said. "There's a new Divination Professor and Muggle Studies Professor as well. But I've never heard of them."

"And the new DADA Professor?" Tracey asked. "That was my first question, but none of you have answered it yet."

"Duke Peverell." Blaise said with a smirk. "And it's named Magical Defence now."

"What?" Tracey asked confusedly.

"The new Magical Defence Professor is Duke Peverell." Blaise repeated slowly.

"What?" Tracey screeched loudly. "But he's our year!"

"True." Blaise admitted. "He was. But he has his Hogwarts Diploma and three Wizarding Masteries. One in Defence, one in Transfiguration, and one in Ancient Runes. He also has three Muggle Fighting Masteries."

Tracey shook her head. "But he doesn't even take Ancient Runes, and he's not very good at Transfiguration."

"Turns out that Gryffindor's Golden Boy isn't nearly as much of a Gryffindor as everyone thought he was." Blaise said. "He's been pretending for years, Trace. Pretending to be a Gryffindor, and an average student. Duke Peverell is no more the Harry Potter that we have been at school with than I am. It was all an act."

Tracey snorted. "And next you'll expect me to believe that the Weasel and the Mudblood were pretending too."

"Merlin, no." Teddy shook his head. "Père was just pretending to be their friend. He needed Dumbledore to believe that he really was the Golden Boy."

"Père?" Tracey asked weakly.

"Duke Peverell." Blaise answered. "Both Teddy and Draco call him Père."


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

30-30-30

Lucius watched in fond amusement as his mate seemed to melt into the couch he was sitting on.

"This is definitely the highlight of the room." Harry sighed happily. "Who knew that the rooms for Head of Slytherin were so cosy. When I was a First Year we all thought that Severus lived in a dungeon. You know, the sort with hard, unforgiving chairs. Maybe even a few beds made of nails. Much like his classroom really."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "You should try sitting on the chair from his Potions Classroom, you feel as though you're sitting on clouds. Severus is incredibly self-indulgent when it comes to his comfort."

Harry laughed. "Really? He's probably moved the chair to his office now. I'll have to sneak in and try it sometime."

Lucius smiled happily. He loved it when his mate acted like this. Most of the time it seemed as though Harry had the world on his shoulders. He was always serious and responsible. Always acting far older than his age, every inch the Duke he was. Lucius understood the importance of Harry's behaviour, but it was wonderful to see him relax in the safety of their rooms.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts and realised that Harry was leering at him. He watched as his mate spread his legs and then beckoned him over.

"I think maybe we should begin the christen our rooms, don't you, Lucius?"

Lucius stood from his armchair and moved to he was standing in front of his mate.

30-30-30

NC-17 Scene Alert! This scene can be found on AO3 if you want to read it. The link is on my profile page.

30-30-30

A few hours later, Harry squeezed Lucius thigh under the table as they watched all the students file through the doors and into the Great Hall. He was in much the same position as he had been at the Staff Meeting, seated between Lucius and Charlie, and only a seat away from Severus. It felt strange watching the students, his students take their seats at the House tables. It had been less than three months since he had been sitting at one of those tables with his classmates, and now he was their Professor.

He quickly spotted Fred, George and Neville, all who grinned and waved at him. Ron and Hermione glared angrily when they saw him, and Harry smirked in reply. Draco, Teddy and Blaise all caught his eyes and inclined their heads gracefully. He leaned back in his chair and watched the students reactions to the new and improved Hogwarts faculty. Most of the students didn't seem too fazed by it, but a few of them – primarily muggleborns – were staring at the Head Table in confusion. The new, and currently empty, table that was sitting between the House tables and the Head table was also drawing some confused looks.

It was louder than Harry remembered, but everyone fell silent as Minerva lead the First Years into the hall. When the group had reached the area in front of the sorting hat, where First Years traditionally stood while they waited to be sorted, Severus stood up.

"Welcome. You will all be aware, at least to some degree, of the changes that have been made at Hogwarts this year. One such change is that First Years will not be sorted until their Second Year."

The Hall was suddenly filled with noise as the students whispered among themselves.

"Silence." Severus glared angrily. "They will be staying in a dormitory specifically for First Years. The reasons for this will be explained to by your Heads of House later this evening."

When Severus paused, Minerva ordered all the First Years to sit around the new table. As the tiny students – none of which, to Harry's joy, were taller than him – took their seats the whispers began again. Within a minute the Hall was filled with the roar of voices again.

"Silence!" Severus' glare was furious. "Starting this year, each Year level will have a Dean. The First Year's Dean is Professor Clarke." Georgianna waved at the students. "Both Professor Lewis' are sharing the positions of Second Year's Dean. The Third Year's Dean is Professor Weasley, the Fourth Year's Dean is Madame Hooch, the Fifth Year's Dean is Professor Sinistra, the Sixth Year's Dean is Professor Cassidy, and the Seventh Year's Dean is Professor Vector.

"Another change is that from this year onwards, all Fifth Years will be resorted. This year, however, we will also be resorting the Second Years, and the Sixth Years."

The noise was instantaneous and Harry was amused to see Severus' eye twitching in anger.

"If you cannot remain silent, I will spell you silent!" Severus roared. "We will be sorting one year level at a time. Second Years now, Fifth Years after dinner, and Sixth Years after dessert. Any student in their Third, Fourth, or Seventh Years who wishes to be resorted will also be given a chance after dessert."

"Second Years here please." Minerva called briskly as Severus sat down.

While long, the Second Year sorting was rather uneventful in Harry's perspective. It was the largest Year Group Hogwarts had seen in decades and of the fifty two students to be sorted, eighteen of them changed Houses. Harry only knew the Gryffindor Second Years, and even then he only really knew their names. As the Second Years returned to their tables, or moved to new ones, the other students didn't seem to be sure how to react. Hufflepuff was, of course, the most welcoming of their newly gained students, followed by the Slytherins – though they didn't seem to know how to react to the former Gryffindors.

When the Second Year resorting had finished Lucius stood up and the students fell silent.

"Good evening. I am Professor Malfoy, the new Politics and Wizarding Traditions Professor. Headmaster Snape has asked me to say a traditional blessing over our meal before we eat."

Harry watched as almost every single Pureblood in the Hall laid their hands palms up on the table and bowed their heads.

"Corn and grain, meat and milk, upon my table before me. Gifts of life, bringing sustenance and strength, I am grateful for all I have." Lucius intoned.

"Thanks be." The pureblood population, and the Professors, replied.

"Thanks be." Lucius answered before sitting down.

The food appeared on the tables and the students began to talk among themselves excitedly.

"Thank you, Lucius." Severus said tiredly.

Harry reached for the beef and began to fill both his and Lucius' plates. "It was received very well. Better than I had expected. I don't think I had ever really realised how many pureblooded students there are at Hogwarts. What is the yearly intake of muggleborns?"

"About a quarter." Lucius replied, filling both his and Harry's plates with potatoes. "An eighth of students are halfblood, the rest are all pureblooded."

"Really?" Charlie asked. "I would have thought there were a lot more halfbloods than that."

"It depends how you define halfblood." Lucius said. "A halfblood is a witch or wizard with one muggle parent, however these days the term is often used to describe people like Harry who have a muggleborn parent."

"So Harry isn't a halfblood?" Charlie asked.

"Oh Merlin." Lucius stared at Charlie in horror. "Draco was right. You have virtually no pureblood training do you. You're twenty five and as ignorant as a First Year muggleborn. You will have to meet with me weekly so I can teach you how to be a Lord."

Charlie's eyebrows rose challenging. "Really, _submissive_?"

Harry rolled his eyes and laid a hand on Charlie's shoulder. "Not here."

Charlie glared at Harry for a moment before nodding in acceptance.

Next Harry looked at Lucius. His mate's shoulders were hunched slightly and he was staring at his plate. Harry put his hand back onto Lucius' thigh and squeezed reassuringly.

"It's alright, little one.

Lucius raised his eyes slightly, though not enough to meet Harry's. "I'm sorry, Domine. I didn't mean to..."

Harry sighed again. One of the side effects of Lucius' constant exhaustion was his inability to pretend to be dominant for long. Some days all it took was one snappy comment from someone for him to seemingly break. Harry quickly cast a slight glamour around himself, Lucius and Charlie and then ran a hand through Lucius' hair. Drakens were different from Veelas. While a submissive Veela was only expected to submit to their parents and mate, submissive Drakens were expected to submit to every dominant. This had caused a few problems over the last month of the summer. Charlie's Draken side, while willing to accept Harry as it's superior, had expected Lucius to submit to him.

"I'm sorry too." Charlie offered from his other side. "I don't mean to go off like that, I just can't help it."

"I know." Harry murmured, manoeuvring Lucius' hand to lie on his shoulder. "But you need to figure out how to control it. You may be my brother, and my son-in-law, but I won't have you upsetting my mate, Charlie."

Charlie nodded. "I know. I don't want to upset him either. I like Lucius."

Harry just inclined his head. "Besides which, Lucius was right. You do need lessons. Lucius will teach you, and you will not upset him. Understood?"

"Yeah."

"Good." Harry looked down at his mate. "You alright now, Lucius?"

Lucius sat up and nodded. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I react like that."

"Your Veela can't help it." Harry said. "And you don't have any spare energy to repress your Veela because of the curse."

"I'm sorry, Lucius." Charlie said, peering around Harry to look at the blond man.

Lucius shook his head. "It's fine, Charlie. Your Draken can't help it. I've been attempting to censure my speech, to try and avoid angering it. I think I am just too weary to remember this evening."

Harry ran his fingers through Lucius' hair again. "Shall I take the glamour down now?"

"Yes, please." Lucius nodded. Once the glamour was down, Lucius turned to his right. "Severus?"

"Hmm?" Severus took a sip from his goblet.

"I know that officially there can only be one Head of Slytherin House, but would it be alright for Harry and I to share the task? Harry and I were talking earlier, and I doubt that I will have the energy to take on all the duties of the position."

Severus stared at his friend incredulously. "You want me to allow Harry Potter to be co-Head of Slytherin with you? Harry Potter? Possibly the most Gryffindorish student to ever study here?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Don't be ridiculous, Severus. I'm no more Gryffindorish than you are, and you know it. Besides we aren't asking that you make me co-Head officially, just that you allow me to help Lucius out."

Severus scowled at him and took a large gulp from his goblet. "It amounts to the same thing. Oh Merlin! Harry Potter, Head of Slytherin." He shuddered dramatically.

"How about Duke Peverell, co-Head of Slytherin." Lucius countered.

"Or Duke Gryffindor, Head of Slytherin. Has a ring to it, don't you think." Harry teased.

Severus narrowed his eyes. "Fine! You can help Lucius on a trial basis."

Harry nodded. "Thank you."

"Yes, Thank you Sev." Lucius smiled.

When the students had finished their dinner Minerva stood up and moved to stand beside the sorting hat again.

"Would all the Fifth Years come here please!"

There were less Fifth Years than there had been Second Years, a total of forty five, but Harry knew these students a lot better than he had the younger ones. Of the forty five students to be resorted, twenty eight of them were placed in new Houses. There were only three students that he knew well enough to care about their resorting, Colin was resorted into Hufflepuff, and Luna was resorted in Slytherin. Ginny stayed in Gryffindor.

Dessert went quickly, and soon it was time for Harry's old classmates to be resorted. Minerva moved once again to stand beside the hat before calling all Sixth Years, and anyone else who wanted to be resorted, to stand in front of her. Surprisingly, there were sixteen students who volunteered for the resorting – none of whom Harry knew well. Minerva decided that they would be resorted first and unsurprisingly, every single one of them changed Houses. Finally it was time for the Sixth Years to be sorted and Harry watched fascinated.

"Abbot, Hannah." Minerva said, and Harry was suddenly reminded of the sorting in his First Year.

"Slytherin!" The Hat shouted. Harry grinned, well that was a surprise. Who would have thought? A Hufflepuff turned Slytherin.

"Boot, Terry."

"Slytherin." The hat cried.

"Bones, Susan."

"Ravenclaw!"

"Brown, Lavender."

"Hufflepuff."

The sorting continued quickly, the majority of students moving Houses. Bulstrode and was put in Ravenclaw, and both Crabbe and Seamus became Hufflepuffs. Harry wasn't even remotely surprised when Hermione was put in Ravenclaw, but was shocked when Goyle was resorted into Gryffindor. Both Neville and Draco remained in their respective Houses, and Teddy was resorted into Ravenclaw as was expected. Harry wasn't expecting Dean's transfer into Ravenclaw, but it didn't exactly come as a surprise either.

Finally there were only two students left to be sorted, Ron and Blaise.

"Weasley, Ron." Minerva intoned.

"Gryffindor." The hat shouted. Harry couldn't find it in himself to be surprised. Ron wasn't smart, nor was he loyal or cunning. Of course he wasn't exactly brave either, but he was pig-headed and that seemed to be a attribute most Gryffindors had.

"Zabini, Blaise."

Harry leaned back in his chair and watched as his future son-in-law put on the hat. He had no doubt that Blaise would be sorted into Slytherin again, though he felt sorry for Teddy. It was unfortunate that they were now in separate Houses. Hopefully some of the changes that had been made would make it easier for them.

"Slytherin!"

Minerva nodded briskly at Blaise and gestured for him to retake his seat beside Draco at the Slytherin table, before moving back to her seat at the Head Table. When they were both seated Severus stood up.

"Each of your Houses will be holding a compulsory House meeting in your Common Rooms in twenty minutes. You will be informed of the remainder of the changes that have been made at Hogwarts this year by your Head of House. Prefects, please insure that the students make their way straight back to the dormitories. First Years, stay behind."

The Hall was immediately filled with a loud roar of voices as the students stood up and made their way out. Harry and Lucius stood as well, and began their trek towards the Slytherin Dorms. Both Georgiana and Severus were remaining behind to look after the First Years.

Due to the Maurader's Map, Harry knew the school well enough to arrive at the Slytherin Common Room before the students. He and Lucius both took a seat on a two seater couch that gave them a view of the entire room. Harry wrapped an arm around Lucius and pulled the taller man against him.

"How are you going?"

Lucius rested his head on Harry's shoulder. "I'm tired. Will you help me with the meeting? You know all the details better than I do anyway."

Harry placed a kiss on the top of Lucius' head. "Of course."

They sat in silence for a few minutes until Harry felt the students magical signatures nearby.

"They're here, love."

Lucius sat up straight and smoothed down his hair. They waited for the first students to come through the portrait door and then gestured for them to take a seat. As the students came in, each one of the paused at seeing the two Professors before moving to sit on the seats around the common room. When the last of the students had found a seat on the floor, Lucius cleared his throat.

"Welcome back to another year at Hogwarts. I am Professor Malfoy, and I am the new Head of Slytherin." He gestured to Harry. "This is Professor Peverell who will be assisting me."

Harry smirked slightly at the confused expressions of some of the students.

"There is a lot we need to cover tonight." Lucius continued. "And it is already eight o'clock, so we will be as efficient as possible. For those of you who have been newly sorted into Slytherin, welcome. I am sure that many of you were not expecting to change Houses, but we hope that you will feel comfortable here. Professor Peverell is going to explain the changes, and answer any questions you might have. As well as being your new Magical Defence Professor, he is also the Head of the Hogwarts Board of Governors and instigated almost all of the changes that have been made."

Harry leaned forward slightly and gazed around the room. "I am aware that it will be difficult for some of you to become accustomed to viewing me as a Professor. Unfortunately for you, I will not be making any allowances for disrespectful behaviour. Many things have changed over the summer, and those of you who have been reading the Daily Prophet will have had some time to assimilate to the changes. Those of you who did not read the Daily Prophet will simply have to catch up."

He paused and looked around the room. "As Professor Malfoy has said, welcome to those of you who were only sorted into Slytherin this evening. Most of you have likely been told all kinds of horrible things about this House, almost all of which are untrue. My First Year at Hogwarts the Sorting Hat described Slytherin as a House where 'you'll make your real friends.' It described students in this House as cunning witches and wizards who are working towards a goal.

"We all change significantly over time, when I was first sorted I was told that I could choose to go to either Gryffindor or Slytherin, I chose Gryffindor. If I was sorted now, or even three years ago, it would put me in Slytherin before it even got near my head. If you have been resorted, then your personality, just like mine did, has developed from that of Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Gryffindor, to that of a Slytherin, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Harry leaned back against the couch. "There are two main reasons why the First Years aren't sorted until their Second Year...


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

31-31-31

Breakfast the next morning was strange. None of the students had chosen to wear robes, though Draco thought that that might change in the Winter months. He across from Blaise and Teddy at the Slytherin table and listened while Teddy told them all about the Ravenclaw Tower.

"There are so many desks." Teddy gushed. "It's amazing. No wonder there were never many Ravenclaws studying in the library, there's enough room for them to all study in their common room."

Blaise laughed and leaned down to kiss him, while Draco looked up at the Professor's Table to Charlie. It had been strange to go back to Charlie's quarters the night before, instead of going to the Sixth Year dorm room. It would be stranger still to have his mate as a Professor, and Care of Magical Creatures was his second class so he couldn't put it off. They had Magical Defence first. So his first Professor would be his Père and his Second would be his mate. Thankfully his Politics class wasn't until the next day, three family members as Professors in one day might have been a bit much.

"You coming, Dray?" Blaise asked, and Draco realised that both his friends were standing up and waiting for him.

"Yeah, sorry." Draco stood up and grabbed his bag, before following his friends out of the great hall.

"Granger is in Ravenclaw, isn't she?" Draco asked curiously.

"Yeah." Teddy shuddered. "I never thought that I would end up in the same house as her. She's insufferable!"

Draco laughed. "Well yes, and this surprises you why? We've known that since First Year. What has she done so far?"

"She argued with Flitwick." Teddy said, his expression outraged. "Apparently she doesn't like the resortings, and she doesn't like that Dumbledore isn't here anymore, and she doesn't like the non-house affiliated common rooms, and she doesn't like the change to the uniforms, and she doesn't like that Père is a teacher, and she doesn't like the Year Deans. Merlin, she's so arrogant. She pretty much just came out and said that she was the smartest person in the room, in the school even, and that since she didn't like it it shouldn't have happened."

"Really?" Draco couldn't help but laugh. "She said that to Flitwick? In front of all the Ravenclaws?"

"It's not funny!" Teddy said. "She's horrible! And I'm stuck in the same House as her."

"How did Millie take it?" Blaise asked.

"I thought she was going to gauge her eyeballs out for a moment there." Teddy said with a small grin. "I have never seen her that angry before. Granger doesn't even have the highest grades in all our classes, Millie has always beaten her in Transfiguration. Who the hell does that little mudblood think she is?"

Draco laughed loudly.

"It's not funny!" Teddy denied.

"It is a little." Blaise said with a smile. "Admit it Teddy, there is some humour in the conversation. In two years we are going to graduate Hogwarts and then where will she be? I'm Duke Zabini, you're the Potter Heir, Dray's the Malfoy Heir, Daph will probably end up being Lady Flint and Granger will attempt to go into politics and will fail miserably because she doesn't know how to play nice with others. In ten years we will all be rich and powerful and she won't."

Teddy smiled slightly. "Well when you put it like that."

They walked into the Magical Defence classroom and found three seats next to each other. Looking around the classroom Draco realised that, unlike previous years, the students weren't clearly divided by house. People were sitting next to their friends regardless of House, it seemed that his Père's plan was already working. There were a lot of people in the class, it looked like almost their entire year had signed up for it.

The entire class was already seated at five to nine when Draco's Père arrived. He strode to the front of the room and stood in front of the Professor's desk, looking every inch a pureblooded Duke.

"Good morning. Welcome to your first class of your Sixth Year at Hogwarts. We have two hours this morning, which gives us plenty of time to get started." He looked around the class seriously. "I know that for many of you it will be strange to have me teaching you, so I would like to spend the first few minutes answering any reasonable questions you have for me."

Draco looked around subtly to see if anyone would take his Père up on the offer.

Dean Thomas was the first person to put his hand up. "Was everything in the Daily Prophet true?"

Draco watched as his Père frowned thoughtfully. "I think so. Which article are you asking about?"

"Do you really have three Masteries?" Thomas asked.

"Yes. I'm afraid that I do."

"How? I slept in the same dorm as you for five years," Thomas pointed out. "And there was nothing to suggest any of this."

31-31-31

Harry sighed and looked at Dean, he had spent hours trying to figure out what he would say in response to these kind of questions, and he still hadn't quite figured it out.

"No, there wasn't. I'm very sneaky like that." He paused as some of the students laughed. "I found a way to study in secret, and I played down my abilities in classes. It was necessarily at the time."

Seamus was the next person to put his hand up. "But why those three Masteries? I understand why you would get your mastery in Defence, but why Transfiguration and Ancient Runes? You didn't even take Ancient Runes."

Harry laughed. "It was an accident. I don't know how much you know about Hogwarts exams, but they are what are called multi-tiered exams. Basically if you prove to the exam that you are above O.W.L level they will begin to test you at N.E.W.T level, and so on. I wasn't aware of that until this Summer. You all know that I have always been very passionate about Defence, so I studied ahead a lot. I got my Transfiguration Mastery because I use it when I'm duelling, and have invented a Transfiguration spell purely out of interest.

"The Ancient Runes Mastery was as much as a shock to me as it was too you." He laughed again. "I was borrowing someone's Ancient Runes' notes to study from and so didn't realise that when the class outline said memorise both the Futhark and the Futhorc alphabet it was a joke."

Harry gazed at the students as they all laughed at him and was unsurprised to see that Hermione had her hand up and was glaring at him.

"Yes, Miss Granger?" He asked.

"Is it true that you've joined Voldemort?" She asked venomously.

Harry cursed Tom in his head as he forced himself to laugh and look around the class casually.

"Me, join Voldemort? Really Hermione? Why would I of all people join Voldemort? He killed my parents and tried to kill me." He jumped back so he was sitting on his desk. He knew that it wasn't dignified but he didn't think the students would care. "Which brings me to something that Headmaster Snape, Minister Shacklebolt, and Madame Bones have asked me to talk to all my Defence students about.

"I am sure you are all aware of the article that the Daily Prophet published early in the summer claiming that Voldemort returned. You will also be aware that a few weeks after that article was a written Minister Fudge stepped down from his position as Minister. Correct?"

He waited until the majority of the class had nodded before continuing. "In the next few days the Ministry will be releasing their official statement of their findings on the matter, but I have been asked to explain it to you first. Firstly let me say, Voldemort has _not _returned."

Harry hid a grin as both Ron and Hermione stood angrily and began yelling at him. The rest of the students began talking loudly among themselves. After about a minute he whistled loudly.

"Quiet." All the students fell silent except for Ron and Hermione. "Ron and Hermione, if you can't behave in my classroom, I will force you to behave."

He smiled grimly as his friends sat down with angry huffs before continuing.

"I know that I spent much of last year claiming that Voldemort had returned so this probably sounds strange coming from me, but I have to admit I don't think I have ever been so glad to be wrong. As I said Voldemort has not returned, rather, there was a wizard who was impersonating him. The Ministry realised this after they managed to apprehend the wizard in question. The copycat was very convincing , even to the point where he had many of Voldemort's former followers convinced that he really was their Lord."

Harry paused for a moment. While he could admit that this was a great plan, it wasn't easy in the delivery.

"The impersonator has been proven to have been involved in Cedric Diggory's death, along with the Azkaban breakout last year and the events that took place in the Department of Mysteries in June."

Both Ron and Hermione were staring at Harry in horror and Harry had to stifle the urge to smirk at them.

"So You-Know-Who isn't really back?" Seamus asked with the beginning of a grin on his face. "He's dead? And they caught the guy who has been killing people?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. There will be an article in the Daily Prophet in about three days with more details." He paused and looked at his students. "Any more questions?"

Nobody spoke for a minute, then Lavender Brown put up her hand. "Can I transfer to another class? I only decided to take Defence because of You-Know-Who."

"Does anyone else want a transfer?" Harry asked, and was unsurprised when a third of the class put up their hands. "Alright then. Teddy, could you write down all the names of the people who want to leave please? When Teddy has written your name down, you're free to go. You will need to talk to your Head of House to arrange it officially though."

It took about five minutes for the students to hand in their name and leave, and Harry was left with a class of twenty four.

"Right." Harry said when the classroom was quiet again. "I understand that some of you will doubt my ability to teach you. Because of that I have arranged for there to be an opportunity for all of you to watch me duel at the first Duelling Club meeting tomorrow. That meeting will be compulsory to anyone who is taking my class.

"Now," Harry said, leaning back on his hands. "Because of the absolutely dismal standards of the past Defence teachers I am going to start with one of the theoretical basics for casting spells, particularly the Defence ones. Every one knows that verbal spells are primarily Latin, right?"

The class nodded in agreement.

"But how many of you understand Latin? If I was to cast a spell right now, one that none of you had seen before, how many of you would understand my incantation?"

Only seven students put up their hand, including Draco, Blaise, and Neville, and Harry recognised them all as being from traditional pureblood families.

"Can any one of you, besides the people who put up their hand, tell me why it might be important to understand Latin?"

"It's not." Hermione spat at him.

"Ten points from Ravenclaw." Harry said with a sigh. "Please wait until I call on you."

"You can't do that." Ron shouted.

"And ten points from Gryffindor." Harry said. "And I think that you'll find that I can. I am a fully fledged Professor here at Hogwarts, and as such I have all the privileges attached."

"The only reason you're Professor is cos you're spreading your legs for the Head of the Board of Governors." Ron said.

Harry raised his eyebrows at his former friend and noticed that all the students, besides Hermione, were staring at Ron like he was insane.

"I think that you will find, Mr. Weasley, that I am the Head of the Board of Governors." He said coldly. "I have two seats on the Board, and am the highest ranked member on it. I am also Duke Gryffindor which gives me additional privileges. Congratulations, you have just landed yourself in detention and are suspended from this class. Leave now."

"You can't do that!" Hermione gasped.

"Oh, I can." Harry said with a small smirk. "And I did. If Ron isn't out of my classroom in twenty seconds I will evict him forcibly."

Ron stood, his face red. "Just you wait, Potter! My family won't stand for this. My Dad's on the Board too, you know."

Harry smirked again. "And I fully look forward to hearing from him. Good day, Mr. Weasley."

Ron glared at him but stalked out of the room. Harry watched him leave before turning back to his class.

"Let this be a lesson to all of you." He said coldly. "I may have been your classmate three months ago, but I am now your Defence Professor. I am also the Head of the Board of Governors, Duke Peverell, Duke Gryffindor, Lord Malfoy, Lord Black, and Lord Potter. I have yet to meet a wizard that can beat me in a duel, in fact I have yet to meet three wizards who can beat me in duel when working together. I am the third youngest person to ever gain their Mastery, and certainly the youngest person to have three. Do, not, piss, me, off." He gazed around the room, making sure to look each student in the eye, before landing his gaze on Hermione. "Do you understand me?"

"Yes, Professor."

Harry nodded briskly. "Good. Now, can any one tell me why an understanding of Latin might be important in Defence?"

31-31-31

"It was amazing!" Teddy gushed. "_He _was amazing! First he talked with us and made everyone more comfortable with the idea of him teaching, well everyone except the Weasel and and Granger anyway. Then he explained the whole You-Know-Who thing. But when he started trying to teach Granger spoke without putting her hand up. And when he took points the Weasel started yelling. He said some pretty nasty things, and Père kicked him out of the classroom. He was so scary, I have never seen Père that scary before, not even with that reporter last week.

"It felt like his magic was surrounding us and could crush us as though we were newts if he wanted it too. And then he started teaching again and he was fantastic! I feel as though everything I have ever known about magic makes more sense now, and I tried some basic spells and they work better now. I can't wait for our next class!"

Lucius smiled as Teddy stopped pacing around his office and sat down. "And the rest of your day? How's Ravenclaw treating you?"

Teddy shrugged. "It's alright. There are desks in our common room, which is awesome, and some of the guys are really nice. Though a few of them seem to hate me because I used to be in Slytherin. I miss Blaise and Dray though. I've slept in the same dorm room as them for five years, it's weird being across the castle now."

Lucius frowned. "Who are the students who hate you?"

"Don't worry about it." Teddy shook his head. "I don't want to become the guy who goes crying to his parents every time someone is mean to him. I may be in Ravenclaw now, Father, but I was a Slytherin for five years. I know how to handle myself."

"If you're sure." Lucius said unhappily. He hated the idea of anyone upsetting his sons. "Keep an eye out though. You may be able to handle yourself, but there were three second year Slytherins who transferred to Ravenclaw. If you see them being hassled let me know."

"Alright." Teddy nodded, and stood up. "I have to go. I have Ancient Runes in ten minutes and it's halfway across the castle."

"Have a good day, Teddy." Lucius smiled.

"You too, Father."

When Teddy had left, Lucius leant back tiredly. He had only taught three classes today and he was already exhausted.

"Professor?" There was a soft knocking on the door.

Lucius sat up and called the student in. "Come in."

Daphne Greengrass walked into his office and stood in front of his desk.

Lucius nodded at her. "Good Afternoon, Miss Greengrass. Have a seat."

Daphne sat daintily in the chair Teddy has just vacated.

"How can I help you?" Lucius asked.

"I had some questions, Lord Malfoy." Daphne said.

"Call me Professor Malfoy, Miss Greengrass." Lucius instructed.

"Yes, sir." Daphne said. "I, I was wondering whether it's to late for me to change my class selection."

Lucius summoned her papers off a shelf and shook his head. "No, it's not. Because of the changes to the curriculum this year, Headmaster Snape is allowing students to change their classes any time in the first two weeks – within reason of course. What changes did you want to make?"

Daphne blushed slightly. "I've been thinking over the summer about what I want to do after Hogwarts. I know that I don't have to get a Mastery, or do any more studying, but I want to. I talked to Marcus, and he says that if I want to, I should."

Lucius leant back in his chair and nodded. "Certainly. How do your parents feel about it?"

Daphne shrugged. "Daddy said I should do whatever makes me happy."

"Have you come to any decisions about what you would like to do?"

"Politics." Daphne answered. "I want to work for the Ministry, I think."

Lucius looked down at the parchment. "You are currently taking Transfiguration, Charms, Magical Defence, History and Arithmacy. Correct?"

"Yes, Professor."

"And what classes would you like to add?"

"Latin, your Politics class, and Muggle Defence, Professor." Daphne answered.

Lucius raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure, Miss Greengrass. You will have to work very hard this year."

Daphne nodded firmly. "Yes sir. I know that I can do it."

"I understand your first two choices, but why Muggle Defence?"

"I want to be able to defend myself." Daphne answered. "And I really enjoy Magical Defence, I always have."

"Professor Peverell will work you very hard." Lucius warned. "I have seen his lesson plans, and they are very intense."

"I want to do it, sir." Daphne said. "And I know that I can."

"Alright." Lucius made a note of her new classes before looking up. "I will evaluate how well you are coping with the work load in a month. If I feel that it is too much for you, you will have to withdraw from at least one class."

Daphne nodded. "Yes sir. Thank you." She stood up and brushed down her skirt. "Many blessings on your bonding, Professor."

Lucius smiled at her. "Thank you. Have a good day."

"You as well sir."

31-31-31

"What do you have today?" Harry asked the next morning as he and Lucius walked to breakfast together – hand in hand.

"First Years, a double period of Third Years, and then my Sixth Year class." Lucius replied. "What about you?"

"A double class of Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Year Muggle Defence, then First Year Magical Defence, a double class of Fourth Year Magical Defence, and finally First Year Muggle Defence." Harry replied.

"I didn't think that the first and second years had Muggle Defence?" Lucius asked as they entered the Great Hall. "Wasn't it supposed to be a third year and onward elective?"

"It was." Harry answered. "But then Severus decided that he wanted all students to have at least one compulsory hour of Muggle Defence a week. It's basically a fitness class, which is much needed." He pulled Lucius' seat out for him. "In my Second Year, Ron and I went into the Forbidden Forest because Hagrid told us to follow the spiders. The spiders led us straight into Hagrid's pet nest of Acromantulas. Ron and I ended up on the run, being chased by hundreds of the things, and if we hadn't been rescued by a flying car we would have been eaten. These days I would have a chance to run away, not a great chance – they have four times as many legs as I do – but a better chance than I had then."

"A flying car?" Charlie asked from his seat on Lucius' other side. "That wouldn't happen to have been my Dad's, now would it? I think I heard about that, Mum was furious."

"There are Acromantulas in the forest?" Natasha asked from a few seats down. "Do you think Hagrid would be able to get me some of their venom? It's very expensive."

"You were chased by Acromantulas?" Lucius asked. "And of course you would be able to get away better now, you're older and taller."

"Older, yes." Charlie said with a grin. "Taller, not so much."

"Has the Daily Prophet arrived yet?" Harry asked. "Madame Bones firecalled me last night. Their articles are being published this morning."

"They should be here in a minute." Severus replied calmly.

Harry nodded in thanks, and began to eat his fruit. When the Daily Prophets arrived, he watched the reactions of the room with amusement – especially the Gryffindors. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were all bent over one copy – alternately reading it and glaring at Harry; Fred, George and Neville were reading another copy and kept grinning in Harry's direction; the rest of the Gryffindors were reacting in both shock and confusion.

"Wow, it's detailed." Charlie said, reading through his copy. "The first five pages are all dedicated specifically to the situation, and the rest of the paper is mostly offshoots of the same topic."

Lucius grabbed Harry's hand and squeezed, before whispering in his ear. "Thank you. I know you said that you would do it, but thank you!"

"What does it say." Harry asked, trying to peel an orange with one hand. "About Rodolphus, I mean."

"Former Death Eater Rodolphus Lestrange – Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange – voluntarily turned himself into Ministry custody and, in return for a retrial, provided information that lead to the capture of the impersonator...blah blah blah...During the retrial, eight out of eleven of Lord Lestrange's convictions were overturned. Due to the time Lord Lestrange has already spent in Azkaban he has been released from Ministry custody with apologies from both Minister Shacklebolt and Madame Bones."

Lucius looked up from the Daily Prophet and smiled slightly at Harry. "Thank you."

Harry swallowed his mouthful of orange. "It wasn't all me. I just made sure that justice was done."

"You have your senior Muggle Defence class first right, Harry?" Charlie asked. "How many kids are in the class?"

"Quite a few actually. I was surprised." Harry replied. "Six Seventh Years, ten Sixth Years, and eight Fifth Years. So that's twenty four."

"Anyone I know?" Charlie asked.

"Well, three of your siblings to start with. Fred, George, and Ginny have all taken the class."

"Ginny?" Charlie laughed. "Have fun with that."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Draco, Blaise and Neville are all taking the class. What I'm surprised about is the number of purebloods, there are twelve of them. And, with the exception of Ginny, I think they're all legitimately interested in the subject."

"How many do you suppose will still be in the class by the end of the day?" Charlie asked with a grin.

"No more than twenty three." Harry said. "We both know that Ginny won't last."

"Harry?" Severus asked.

"Yes?"

"You have a duel tonight, correct?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. I need my Defence students to see me in action. Officially it is the first night of the Duelling Club."

"Who are you duelling?" Severus asked.

"Hezekiah. I considered bringing Tom in, but it seemed like more trouble than it's worth." Harry looked up and saw the the majority of the students were leaving the hall. "Time to go."

"Can I come watch?" Charlie asked. "I don't have a class until the third hour."

Harry stood up with a grin. "You can come in, but only if you're willing to join in." He grabbed Lucius' hand and gave it a small squeeze. "Have a good morning Lucius. I'll see you at lunch."

Twenty minutes later Harry was standing on the Quidditch pitch, in front of the twenty four students.

"Welcome to your first Muggle Defence Class. I know that it will be hard for many of you to treat me with the same respect you usually would give your Professors. I don't care. Regardless of my age, or my previous status as a student, I am qualified to teach you, and teach you I shall. I don't care what your personal opinions are of my Professor status, you will treat me with respect. Understood?"

Harry waited until most of the students had at least nodded before continuing. "I know that it is strange to have class with students from other years but it was decided that, since you are all starting at the basics, there was no point in splitting you up. This class will be physically taxing and you can't wear your uniform. In the changing rooms are your new Muggle Defence uniforms. You all need to go get changed before we begin."

After the students had left for the changing rooms Harry removed his robes, underneath were sweatpants and a singlet.

"So what's the plan?" Charlie asked from where he was sitting on the grass.

Harry grinned. "First we're going to stretch, then we're going to run to the front gate and back. Then some more stretches, and some and flexibility building exercises. And then I'll see how we're going time wise."

"Really?" Charlie lay down. "Ug, so it's all fitness building? No fighting? None?"

Harry moved to sit beside him. "There's this muggle movie called Karate Kid, where a muggle Fighting Master agrees to teach a kid how to fight. For the first month all the kid ends up doing in painting his house and cleaning his car. The kid gets really upset, but then he realises that while doing all that work he has actually learnt all the basics."

"So what, you're going to get the kids to paint Hogwarts?" Charlie asked with a grin.

"No, but before I teach them how to fight they need to be fit. So I'll work on that first."

"And it helps weed out the slackers from the class." Charlie commented.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, that too."

They both stood up when the students began trickling back out onto the field. When all twenty four students had arrived, Harry grinned at them.

"Great. Everyone get into a large circle around me. You need to be just out of reaching distance from each other." He waited until they had obeyed before nodding. "Good, first we're going to start with some stretches."

31-31-31


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

32-32-32

Lucius observed his Sixth Year Politics class from his seat behind the desk. There were nine students. One Gryffindor, four Slytherins, one Hufflepuff and three Ravenclaws. Five boys who would one day inherit a title, three girls who would one day marry a titled wizard, and Granger. Lucius moved to stand and sighed. He was so tired, maybe he would stay sitting for this class.

"Good morning." Lucius looked over the students again. "Welcome to your first Wizarding Politics class. It has been decided that this class will be run differently than most others. While I am aware that normally social standing means very little during your time at Hogwarts, this will not be the case in this class. If any of you are to succeed in Politics it is essential that you learn how to properly associate with those who are of both higher and lower rank than you."

Lucius looked over the class again and allowed a small smile when he saw Granger's sneer. This class would not be an easy one for her.

"Some of the things I teach you in this class you will already know, and some of it you may disagree with. If you do disagree then that is unfortunate for you, but this is not a debating ring and as such you will keep that to yourself. I am not here to argue with you. I am here to teach you about how our political system works, and the tricks to moving in political circles.

"We are going to start by introducing ourselves properly. When introducing yourself in a formal setting there is a strict protocol that must be followed. The first to introduce themselves must always be the wizard, or witch, with the highest social standing. The lowest ranking person must introduce themselves last. You start with your name, including a title if you have one, and then your position in your House. It will be different for Miss Granger. As she is muggleborn, she will simply introduce herself with her name."

Lucius pulled himself to his feet and moved to stand in front of his desk. "Now I am sure you all know me as Lord Malfoy, and that is certainly the title I am using in casual situations, however as you all know I was recently bonded. I am Consort Lucius Peverell, bonded to the Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Peverell, who also hold the titles, Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Gryffindor, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Black, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, and the Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter. With my Bonded's permission I serve as the Regent of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. "

There was a moment of silence and then Blaise stood up. "I am Duke Blaise Zabini, Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Zabini."

Longbottom was next. "I am Lord Neville Longbottom, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom."

"I am Draco Malfoy, Heir Apparent to the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy."

"I am Theodore Nott, Heir Apparent to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter."

"I am Terence Boot, Heir Apparent to the Aged and Aristocratic House of Boot."

"I am Susan Bones, Heir Presumptive to the Aged Aristocratic House of Bones."

"I am Daphne Greengrass, first daughter of the Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass."

"I am Hannah Abbot, my Mother's brother is the Nobleman of the Aged and Aristocratic House of Wright."

Granger stood up with a sneer on her face. "I am Hermione Granger, and I think this is stupid!"

Lucius sighed, "Ten points from Ravenclaw, Miss Granger. It doesn't matter what you think. You signed up for this class to learn about how our political system works. You have two choices. Either you can accept that you will not like everything that you learn in the class but choose to learn it respectfully anyway, or you can drop the class. No one is forcing you to stay."

Lucius held her gaze until she sat down with a huff, then he moved to sit down behind his desk again. "Today we are going to look at the basic structure of the Wizengamot. There are seventy six seats on the Wizengamot. Eight for Archaic and Royal Houses, twenty two for the Ancient and Noble Houses, thirty six for the Aged and Aristocratic Houses, and ten seats whose occupants are elected d_emocratically._ Twenty three of those seats are empty at the moment, either because the family has died out or because the Head of the House has no interest in Politics.

"There are one hundred and thirty five votes. Each Duke has five, each Lord has two, and each Nobleman or elected member has one. The Minister has an additional five. Because twenty three Wizengamot seats are empty, there is in actuality only eighty nine available votes currently in the Wizengamot. For a Proposal to be passed by the Wizengamot they need sixty percent of the available votes, which is currently fifty four votes.

"The positions of Minister and Chief Warlock can only be held by titled members of the Wizengamot." Lucius stopped when he saw Granger had her hand up again. "Yes, Miss Granger."

"So what you're saying is that there are twenty three free seats in the Wizengamot?" Granger looked excited.

"No, Miss Granger." Lucius replied with a sigh. "They are not free, they are currently unclaimed. There is a difference."

"But you said that some of the families have died out." Granger argued. "That means that they aren't coming back. If there are free seats why haven't they be made available for people to be elected into? It's disgraceful that none titled people only get ten votes!"

Lucius stared for a moment. _Open the available seats for muggleborns and the like to be elected? That would be a disaster! _He would have to bring the subject up with the Dark Lord so they could find a way to prevent it.

"I'm afraid, Miss Granger, that your opinion doesn't matter in this classroom. You are here to learn from me, not to share your own thoughts. And ten points from Ravenclaw for not addressing me with the proper title.

"As I was saying, only a titled member of the Wizengamot can be elected as Minister or Chief Warlock. The Chief Warlock isn't awarded any additional votes, but they hold an immense amount of power regardless. They decide who is allowed to talk, and who isn't. They decide when a vote is called, or even, whether a vote is called. The current Chief Warlock is Lord Bartholomew Kirke, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Kirke. Many of you will know his son, and Heir, Andrew. Miss Bones, you are in a courtship with Andrew, are you not?"

Susan Bones blushed. "Yes, your grace."

"Congratulations." Lucius allowed with a small smile. "Now the Minister position is different. While there job description has very little to do with the Wizengamot, they get six additional votes. The current Minister is Nobleman Kinglsey Shacklebolt, Nobleman of Aged and Aristocratic House of Shacklebolt.

"The next Wizengamot Meeting will be held next Thursday. It will be the first Meeting that has been held since Minister Shacklebolt was elected."

32-32-32

"Why am I here?" Tracey Davis asked. "I could be doing so many other things right now."

Draco rolled his eyes. "You need to see this."

"But why? You know I hate watching people duel." Tracey shuddered dramatically. "It's just so violent."

"It won't be violent tonight?" Draco promised. "There are first years here, Père will just stun Professor Enu."

"How can you be so sure that Potter will win?" Tracey asked.

"Professor Peverell." Blaise corrected. "And that is why you need to be here. Duke Peverell could beat anyone in this room if he was wandless and blind."

"Sure he could." Tracey scoffed.

"Just watch Tracey. This won't show you how good he really is, but at least you'll be able to get some idea."

Tracey sighed. "When is it starting."

"Any minute now."

Draco turned to look at Teddy who had just arrived. Teddy leant against a wall and put his hand on Blaise' shoulder.

"Where were you?" Draco asked.

"Father wanted to ask me about the incident with the Weasel." Teddy replied with a small shrug.

"You call him Father?" Tracey asked.

"What incident with the Weasel?" Draco asked.

"Of course I do." Teddy answered Tracy before turning to Draco. "He ambushed me in the hallway and started yelling things, but a Professor arrived before anything else could happen."

"What about your real father?" Tracey persisted.

"Did he get in trouble?" Draco asked.

"Detention with Filch." Teddy said before turning to Tracey. "Theodred Nott is a bastard who went missing just after signing my guardianship over to Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy. I am more Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy's son than I ever was Theodred's."

"Missing?" Tracey asked. "Is he missing? Or _missing_?"

"He's alive if that's what you mean." Teddy replied dispassionately. "But I imagine that he will be missing for quite some time, if not forever."

"You know where he is." Tracey realised.

"Tracey, dear." Daphne crossed her ankles calmly. "You are being rather indiscreet. Do quiet down, Professor Peverell is about to start."

Tracey huffed and Draco turned to look at the duelling platform where is Père and Professor Enu were standing.

"Alright." His Père said loudly, his voice amplified by a spell. "Welcome to the first Duelling Club meeting. I'm sure that those of you students, fifth year and older, probably remember the last attempt to start a Duelling Club at Hogwarts, I promise that this won't be nearly as disastrous. Since it is my job to teach you Defence, I think that it is important to prove to you that I know what I am talking about, so Professor Enu and I are going start off the year with a friendly duel."

"Why Enu?" Daphne asked quietly. "Surely Lord Malfoy or Professor Snape would have been better options."

"Professor Enu is the only Professor, besides Père, who has a Defence Mastery." Teddy answered. "Father says that he is just as good, if not better, than they are."

"And you think that Potter can beat him?" Tracey snorted delicately.

"Have some respect, Tracey." Draco said with a glare before putting up a silencing charm. It wouldn't do for this conversation to be overheard. "You don't have to like Père, or even believe what we tell you about him, but you do have to show him deference. Père is Head of the Archaic and Royal Houses of Peverell and Gryffindor, and the Head of the Ancient and Noble Houses of Black and Potter. You are the niece to the Head of the Aged and Aristocratic House of Davis. We know that you didn't have the same kind of upbringing that we did, but at least try and conduct yourself with some pureblood manners."

Tracey gasped indignantly and moved a hand to sit on her chest. "Well I never."

"Draco is right, Tracey." Blaise interjected. "We aren't children anymore. You need to remember to show respect for your betters and stop behaving like a mudblood with no knowledge of our society."

Tracey's eyes narrowed. "At least I actually have noble blood. Teddy's hardly better than a mudblood with his heritage. The House of Nott is no better than trash, and you know it."

"I may not have had the same training as you, Tracey, but at least I know better than to go around mouthing off against the Head of the most powerful family in England." Teddy replied calmly as Tracey sneered at him. "Also, Père has made me his heir. I am the Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter now."

"Taking charity are you?" Tracey asked with an arched brow. "I suppose we can all be glad of that, at least you aren't disgracing Slytherin with your pauper clothes anymore."

"Look around you Tracey." Daphne said coolly. "In five years I will be Lady Flint, Dray will be Lord Malfoy, Teddy will be Lord Potter, Blaise will still be Duke Zabini. Can you really afford to keep alienating us? You are outranked, my dear. Might as well get used to it."

"You bitch." Tracey snarled at Daphne, before standing and stalking away.

Draco chuckled. "Merlin. Where did that come from. She's never been like in the past, has she?"

"She has." Daphne replies. "Just not quite so bad I don't think. She was always on her best behaviour on you before now."

"What changed?" Teddy asked curiously. "Why now?"

"She needs to marry well." Blaise replied. "Up until this year, Dray and I were still prospects. Now we're both spoken for so there's no point."

"That doesn't explain why she didn't say anything around me." Teddy said.

Daphne laughed lightly. "Teddy, dear, all of Slytherin knows that you are out of bounds. They have since first year. Draco and Blaise have always made it very clear that any insult against you, will be seen as an insult against them personally."

"Really?"

"Of course." Blaise said with a small smiled, before pulling Teddy toward him and kissing him lightly. "I will never allow anyone to hurt you, not while it is in my power to stop it."

Draco looked towards the duelling platform, only to see that his Père was currently renervating his opponent._"We missed the duel."_

_"Really?" Daphne looked disappointed. "I wanted to see Duke Peverell duel."_

_"You're supposed to call him Professor Peverell in school." Draco corrected her._

_"I know." Daphne shrugged gracefully. "But while I would never be ill-mannered enough to admit it to anyone besides you three, I am still struggling with the idea of him outranking me. Until I am used to the idea, I will call him Duke Peverell in my head and out loud. Just not to his person."_

_"Would you like to meet him?" Draco asked suddenly. _

_"It really helps." Blaise added. "When I first heard about his titles, and that he had bonded to Lord Malfoy, I couldn't get it right in my head. But after an evening in his company, I don't think I will ever have problems with that again."_

_"I've already met him." Daphne pointed out. "I'm in two of his classes."_

_"It's not the same." Blaise said. "He can't act like the most powerful person in England while he's a teacher here, so he tones it down. You've met Professor Peverell, not Duke Peverell."_

_"There's a difference?" Daphne titled her head to the side slightly. "In any case, surely the Dark Lord is more powerful."_

_"There's a huge difference." Blaise said. "And politically Duke Peverell is more powerful than the Dark Lord. He is the Head of five Houses, the Dark Lord is only Duke of Slytherin."_

_32-32-32_

_"You still haven't found them?" Harry hissed angrily at the Death Eater in front of him. "How the hell is that possible?" He stood up and leant forward with his hands on the table in front of him. "Tell me everything."_

Julius Bulstrode, the Death Eater responsible for the man hunt for Bellatrix and Rabastan, leant away slightly and groped franticly for the parchment in front of him.

"There have been twelve confirmed sightings of them, your grace." Bulstrode started.

"Confirmed how?" Harry asked snappily.

"If we hear rumors that they have been seen, we go to the location given and check for any sign of their magical signatures." Bulstrode paused and looked at Harry.

"Twelve sightings, you said." Harry prompted impatiently.

"Yes, your grace."

"Where?"

"Pardon, your grace?"

"Where were they seen?"

Bulstrode groped for his parchment again. "Uh, in a mixture of muggle and wizarding areas."

"Fine, but where?" Harry glared at the man and then turned to glare at Rodolphus, Severus and Lucius, all who were chuckling quietly.

The entire of Tom's Council was present, along with Lord Adrian Pucey who was in charge of the Aurors' search for the two fugitives and of course Bulstrode.

"Ruddy!" Harry snapped.

Ruddy popped into the room and bowed lowly. "How can Ruddy serve Duke Peverell?"

"I need a large map of England. Now."

The House Elf disappeared, and then returned ten seconds later with a large piece of parchment in his grasp. Harry took the parchment and dismissed him before unrolling the parchment and laying it out on the table. Once the corners of the map were magically secured to the table, Harry looked up to glare at Bulstrode.

"I want you to tell me the exact locations of where you know Bellatrix and Rabastan have been." Harry commanded clearly. "I don't care whether you point on the map, give me the name of the town, or whether you can give me the exact position according to longitude and longitude. But I want to know."

"I," Bulstrode broke off at Harry's glare and nodded quickly. "Of course, your grace."

Harry waited a moment and then glared at the other man again. "What are you waiting for?"

"I don't have those details with me, your grace." Bulstrode admitted.

Harry sighed and leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes for a moment. "So when you were ordered to come here today to give Duke Slytherin and I an update on your search, you didn't actually bring the details of where you know they have been? That's what you're telling me?"

Bulstrode nodded.

"Oh for Merlin's sake." Harry bit out furiously. "Go and get them then. You have ten minutes."

Bulstrode nodded again before fleeing the room quickly.

"Not the smartest wand in the shop is he?" Pucey asked, sounding amused.

"At least his daughter has some intelligence." Harry said. "Sometimes intelligence skips a generation."

"Why did you put him in charge of this? I would have thought it would have been high priority."

"Oh it is." Harry reassured the other man. "Apparently he's good at finding things."

"He is." Rodolphus put in. "He just isn't great at being organised."

"Or being around people who intimidate him." Severus added.

Harry sighed before looking down at the map and then at Pucey. "Did you at least bring the list of places where you know they have been?"

Pucey nodded and unrolled the piece of parchment that had been lying on the table in front of him. "I did."

"What use will his list be though?" Parkinson asked. "The Aurors aren't allowed to test for magical signatures, unless there is definite physical proof already that the witch or wizard have been there. Apparently it's an invasion of the criminal's privacy. Shacklebolt's list will have hundreds of sightings, and no indication of which ones are legitimate."

Pucey smirked. "Just because the Aurors aren't allowed to, doesn't mean that they don't. The evidence can't be used in front of the Wizengamot, and we have to keep quiet about it, but there is always at least one witch or wizard on Auror teams who are willing to check anyway."

Rodolphus let out a bark of laughter. "And you get away with it?"

"Of course. We don't write reports about it, or use it as evidence at the trials, we just use it to figure out which of the sometimes multiple hundreds of leads we should follow." Pucey replied.

Harry leant forward in his seat. "So where do you know they have been?"

Pucey looked down at the parchment. "They've been seen around London a few times. Barking, Chigwell, Borehamwood, Harrow."

Harry wandlessly marked all the locations on the map, before looking up for more.

"Rabastan was in Blackpool a few weeks ago, and then Newbiggen a few days after that. Bellatrix was seen in Fence and Grange and Goosnargh the same week."

Harry nodded and continued marking the map as Pucey read out the different town names, some magical, some muggle, some a mixture. The Auror's list was long, almost sixty different sightings and none of them in the same place. Bulstrode slipped back into the room towards the end of the list, and when Kingsley had finished he read out his findings – three of which turned out to be just repeats of the Aurors' findings. When they were finished Harry looked down at his map of England which was now covered in coloured marks. Red for Bellatrix, blue for Rabastan, purple for both of them.

"Well," Tom said after a moment. "I'd say that's rather conclusive, wouldn't you?"

Harry nodded. The majority of the marks seemed to circle a large forest area to east of Blackpool. "What's the name of the forest?"

"It's not one forest." Marcus Flint said. "The area is made up of a lot of different woods and forests. Gisburn Forest is in there, that's a muggle one. Mancript Forest is there too – it's a magical forest – a lot of wizards have cabins there, it's one of the least dangerous magical forests in England. No Acromantula for a start."

"Why on earth would any wizard in their right mind have a cabin a forest?" Rodolphus asked with sneer.

"Not all wizards are snobs like you, Rodol." Severus said, rolling his eyes. "I sometimes rent a cabin to stay in during the summer holidays. It's perfect for collecting potions ingredients."

Rodolphus shuddered dramatically. "But there would be so much dirt, and trees, and bugs."

"So they're probably staying in a cabin in the forest then." Harry said, scowling at Rodolphus. "Has anyone looked there yet, Bulstrode?"

Bulstrode shook his head. "No, your grace. We'll start looking right away."

Harry nodded sharply. "Good. Now get out."

Bulstrode stood hurriedly causing his chair to fall over. "Yes, your grace. Could, I, uh, could I please have copy of the map, your grace?"

Harry sneered at the man, but replicated the map and handed the copy to him. "Find them, Bulstrode."

"Yes, your grace."

Once Bulstrode had left, Harry leant back in his chair. Why were other wizards often so stupid? He got enough of stupidity from his students, he didn't need it from adult wizards as well.

"I should go as well. I'm supposed to be at work at the moment." Pucey said, standing. "Do you mind if I have a copy of your map as well? It'll save me from having to draw one up myself. It was a great idea."

Harry nodded and made another copy of the map, handing it over the table. "It's a muggle thing."

Harry waited until Pucey had left before turning to Tom. "Shall we have some tea before we move on."

"Very well." Tom nodded, before calling for a House Elf.

After the tea and cupcakes had been served, Harry looked towards Tom. Their agreement had been that Harry would lead the first half of the meeting – it had been his mate who had been attacked after all – and Tom would lead the second half.

"You all know that Voldemort has been successfully killed," Tom started. "Or at least proven deceased. Harry and Lucius have arranged a formal ball tomorrow night, to officially introduce me to society. After that I will be making my first appearance as Duke Slytherin next week at the Wizengamot session."

"What if someone recognises you, my lord?" Parkinson asked. "There must be people in the Wizengamot who you went to school with."

"I go by Duke Slytherin now, Parkinson." Tom said with a scowl. "Refer to me by my title. There are very few people in the world who know that Tom Riddle became Voldemort, only two of whom haven't sworn their loyalty two me. I also look ten years older than I did when I disappeared from the public eye over fifty years ago. If anyone comments, it will be easy enough to claim to be distantly related to Tom Riddle."

"How did people not realise that you were Voldemort, your grace?" Flint asked. "Surely your appearance wouldn't have changed that much."

Harry, who had been wondering that himself, looked at Tom for the reply.

"I used a complex facial transfiguration." Tom said dryly. "It made me appear less than human. Very helpful for terrifying the masses."

"Who are the two people not on your side that know who you really are, your grace?" Rodolphus asked.

"Dumbledore." Tom sneered with disdain. "Also Minerva McGonagall. Apparently Dumbledore confided in her."

"Won't it come out in Dumbledore's trial?" Marcus asked with a frown. "That's what I would do if I was Dumbledore. If his lawyer chooses to question him under Veritaserum during the trial, he could ask him all kinds of questions."

Harry smirked. "That won't be a problem. Dumbledore is being represented by Anna Wood who wants Dumbledore to pay for his crimes, just as much as we do."

"Then why did Dumbledore choose her?" Marcus asked.

Harry leaned back in his chair proudly. "Because as far as Dumbledore is concerned, Anna Wood is a dedicated member of his Order. And she was up until about two months ago."

"What changed?" Rodolphus asked curiously.

"Until Anna Wood was married she was known as Anna Blishwick. Eight years ago, Dumbledore made mistakes that caused the death of Darrell Blishwick – Anna's nephew. Two months ago, I informed Anna of Dumbledore's involvement." Harry explained. "She will ensure that Dumbledore won't get a chance to spout any information that we don't want him too. Madame Bones has promised me that the Ministry interrogator won't ask any dangerous questions either."

Rodolphus rolled his eyes. "Merlin's balls, Harry, the vastness of your network is astounding. What about McGonagall? Will she cause problems?"

"No." Severus said. "Minerva feels betrayed by Dumbledore and I managed to convince her that Duke Slytherin has regained his sanity. She is willing to stay neutral."

"Has Dumbledore's trial been scheduled?" Parkinson asked. "I haven't seen anything about it in the Prophet."

"Yes." Harry answered. "It is in a month, the sixth of October. They are still trying to compile a complete list of charges that should be brought against him, and of course evidence for each of the charges."

"What are the charges so far?" Parkinson asked.

"Multiple accounts of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter, Use of an Unforgivable, Use of Unforgivable resulting in death, and Obstruction of Justice." Harry replied. "There are a couple of other areas they are looking into as well."

"Wow." Marcus laced his fingers together. "Who would have known."

"As I was saying," Tom said loudly. "I will be making my entrance as Duke Slytherin next week at the Wizengamot Meeting. It is the first time the Wizengamot have met since Shacklebolt was elected, and we will using the opportunity to introduce our Muggleborn Proposal."

"If I may, your grace." Parkinson started cautiously. "What exactly is our Muggleborn proposal?"

Harry levitated a parchment containing the proposal to each wizard at the table as Tom began to explain.

"We are calling that muggle raised students be brought into our world at the much younger age. That way they can be instructed on wizarding culture before they reach Hogwarts. A new department will also be formed at the Ministry, specifically to oversee muggle raised students. They will ensure that the young witch or wizard aren't in an abusive environment, and also ensure that the parents don't breach the Secrecy Act."

"Will you have the votes, your grace?"

"Easily." Tom answered imperiously. "We only need fifty four votes and, between Harry and I, we already have twenty one of those."

There was a moment of silence and then Lucius spoke. "Tom? Something came up in my Sixth Year Politics class a few days ago that I believe is worth mentioning."

Harry turned to look at his mate in surprise, he hadn't heard anything about this. Not that it was too surprising, all Lucius seemed to be able to do at the moment was teach and sleep.

"Go on." Tom commanded.

"I was introducing the Wizengamot, explaining the number of seats, the number of votes, etcetera. When I mentioned that there were twenty three seats currently not in use, one of the students asked why those seats were allowed to remain empty and weren't converted into democratic seats."

Harry sneered. "It was Granger, wasn't it?"

Lucius nodded. "I thought that perhaps if you were to act first, Tom, maybe find a more pleasing way to refill the seats, then we could prevent that sort of idea ever being put into effect."

Tom smirked. "I'll consider some options. Thank you for bringing it to my attention, Lucius."

Lucius nodded.

Harry caught Tom's eyes for a moment before looking around the table. "Alright then. That's us done for the day. We will see you all tomorrow night at Malfoy Manor." He waited for the room to clear out, leaving only him, Lucius, and Tom, before putting his elbows on the table and leaning forward. "Everything is prepared for tomorrow night. Every wizarding family of note has accepted the invitation. Do you have any last minute requests?"

"Yes actually." Tom leaned back in his chair and smirked. "Madame Bones has agreed to attend as my date. You need to ensure that she is seated beside to me at dinner."

Harry knew he was staring, but he didn't seem to be able to stop. Madame Bones? As Tom's date? The Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement was going to the ball as Voldemort's date. Oh the irony.

"Really? I take it your discussions have been going well then?"

Tom's smirk widened. "Very well."

"Last time I spoke to her she was still finding it hard to understand why I would be vouching for you. Whatever did you say to convince her?"

"I simply explained to her that I wasn't in my right mind because of the horcruxes, and that I had changed." Tom explained smugly.

"And she doesn't care that you murdered Moaning Myrtle before any of the horcruxes?" Harry asked in disbelief. "Or that you are a Dark wizard?"

"I wouldn't say that she doesn't care." Tom replied. "But she is willing to overlook those things. It has been over fifty years since Myrtle, and I don't kill people anymore. So long as I continue to use political means to make changes instead of violent ones she is willing to give me a chance."

Harry laughed. "Look at you. The Dark Lord who doesn't kill people because his girlfriend won't let him."

Tom snarled and sent a stinging towards Harry who dodged it. "I haven't killed anyone in months! It had nothing to do with Amy. Besides, if I'm introduced to society with the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on my arm, nobody will suspect that I am a Dark Wizard."

"And Madame Bones is alright with that?" Harry asked curiously.

Tom was back to looking smug again. "It was her idea."


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

33-33-33

Daphne Greengrass smoothed down her strapless periwinkle blue dress nervously as she waited beside the gargoyles that guarded the entrance to Headmaster Snape's office. Draco, Teddy and Blaise had assured her that the Duke Peverell she would see tonight, would be very different from the one that had been teaching classes at Hogwarts. Part of her wondered just how scary he could be, he was younger than she was, for Morgana's sake, but on the other hand he had been made the Dark Lord's equal.

"Good evening, Miss Greengrass." Professor Weasley greeted her with a nod as he and Draco arrived.

"You look amazing, Daph." Draco with a smile. "Where are Blaise and Teddy? I thought they were supposed to escort you?"

Daphne smiled wryly. "They did. Then they disappeared into an alcove over there. Apparently Teddy thinks Blaise looks absolutely ravishing in his robes."

Professor Weasley frowned as Draco moved down the hall to find his friends. "They shouldn't have left you here alone."

Daphne laughed lightly. "It was only for a few minutes, Professor. I am quite capable of taking care of myself."

"Of that I have no doubts." Professor Weasley grinned. "But Harry, Professor Peverell, made it very clear to both of them that they were responsible for escorting you to the Manor. He won't be happy that they left you here by yourself."

"I don't understand why." Daphne said. "We're Flooing straight from the Castle to the Manor. What could happen?"

Professor Weasley laughed. "Because Harry's a worrywart." He sobered up slightly and lowered his voice. "Lucius was attacked over the summer, in a place that Harry thought was safe. He isn't taking any chances. Besides, technically you're not supposed to be invited. The only Hogwarts' students are allowed to leave for this sort of thing that are the ones who have inherited titles like Neville or Blaise, and the wizards they are bonded too – like Fred and George. Draco is allowed because he's bonded to me, and they made an exception for Teddy since he's part of Harry's family."

Daphne frowned slightly. "So why am I here?"

Professor Weasley grinned. "Because Draco and Teddy asked if they could please invite you, and Harry gave in."

"Because he's a big softy." Two voice chorused from behind her, and Daphne spun around in fright. By the time Daphne had realised that it was only the Weasley Twins she had drawn her wand.

"Ooo." Said the Twin on the left.

"Very good reflexes." Continued the Twin on the right.

"Hart'd be impressed." Finished the Twin the on the left.

Daphne stared at them in confusion for a moment before putting her wand away and curtseying. "My apologies, Consorts Longbottom."

"Don't worry about it, Miss Greengrass." Lord Longbottom smiled from beside the twins. "They would have deserved it if you have hexed them."

"Aw, Nev." Twin on the left pouted.

"That's not a very nice thing to say." Twin on the right shook his head.

"Hurtful in fact." Twin on the left pretended to wipe away a tear.

Daphne wasn't entirely sure what to make of them. She had heard of the Weasley twins of course, and had seen them from across the Hall many times, they were infamous. But they were even more confusing in person than she had heard they were.

"Daphne."

Daphne turned around and saw Draco, Teddy and Blaise standing a few feet away gesturing for her to join them. She quickly glanced at Lord Longbottom to ensure that she wouldn't offend him by leaving, before moving to stand beside Draco.

"Sorry for abandoning you." Teddy said sheepishly.

"It's fine." Daphne smiled.

"Are you looking forward to seeing Marcus?" Blaise asked wiggling his eyebrows teasingly. "Maybe you could pay us back and pull him into an alcove later."

Daphne laughed. "I'm not sure how that would pay you back at all. Besides Marcus and I are much too well behaved to canoodle in random alcoves."

Draco laughed loudly. "Oh, sure you are! Because the two of you never slipped off into an alleyway when he came to visit you at Hogsmeade last year."

Daphne could feel her cheeks heat as she blushed. "Oh, you..."

"Shhh." Teddy gestured towards Professor Weasley who was speaking to his brothers.

"...taking Snape as his date tonight. Fucking finally! He's only been lusting after the guy since he was a student." Professor Weasley was saying

"Really?" Twin on the left grinned wickedly at Twin on the right. "Really?"

"Oh Merlin." Twin on the right grinned in reply. "There are just too many jokes."

"If you are quite finished discussing my life." Headmaster Snape's voice cause Daphne to spin around in fright again, though at least this time she didn't draw her wand. "It is time to leave."

Headmaster Snape looked lovely. Well, handsome was probably a more correct term to use. His robes were black with a purple trimmings, his hair was braided and his face looked much less sallow than it normally did. The scowl was normal though.

She followed the Headmaster up into his office along with Teddy and Blaise. Draco had dropped back to walk with Professor Weasley.

"Duke Zabini," Headmaster Snape inclined his head slightly. "If you wouldn't mind going first. Then Miss Greengrass can follow you."

Blaise nodded in agreement and grabbed a handful of Floo powder out of the pot.

"Malfoy Manor."

Once Blaise was gone, Daphne quickly cast a preservation charm over herself to insure that her hair and dress weren't disturbed by the Floo and took a handful of power.

She stepped into the fire. "Malfoy Manor." Blaise was waiting with an arm extended to guide her out of the fireplace on the other side.

"Thank you." Taking down the preservation charm, Daphne looked around the room to see who had already arrived. She knew they were early. Duke Peverell had requested that Teddy and Draco be available to greet the guests alongside him and Lord Malfoy as was proper.

"Daphne." Marcus took hold of one of her hands and brought it up to his mouth to kiss.

"Marcus." Daphne smiled happily. She had missed him in the week since she had been at Hogwarts. She wasn't sure how she would last the next two years.

"You look lovely."

"You don't look so bad yourself." Daphne allowed herself to admire Marcus' dark blue robes with trimming that matched her dress perfectly.

Marcus stepped closer and wrapped her in a hug before kissing her forehead. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." Daphne allowed herself to enjoy the closeness for a moment before stepping away. "I need to greet Duke Peverell and Lord Malfoy."

Marcus smiled for a moment and offered her his arm. "I shall introduce you. I warn you though, Duke Slytherin is standing beside them."

Daphne looked at him in shock. "Really?"

Marcus chuckled. "Of course. The entire purpose of this Ball is to introduce him into proper society. You needn't worry about him though, just treat him as you would any Duke, and remember that Duke Peverell outranks him."

Daphne allowed Marcus to lead her towards where the Duke Peverell was standing with his family and Duke Slytherin. She still had problems seeing Harry Potter as her Professor and friend's father, let alone as a terrifying wizard who outranked even the Dark Lord.

When Marcus stopped in front of Duke Peverell, Daphne lowered herself into a deep curtsey and looked down.

"Your grace, may I present Miss Greengrass, the first daughter of the Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass and my future wife."

"Welcome to my Manor, Miss Greengrass." Duke Peverell's voice was cold and rigid as he offered her his hand to kiss. "You may rise."

Daphne stood carefully. "Thank you, your grace."

"You of course know my Consort, Lord Malfoy, and my sons: Draconis, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy and his bonded Charles; and Theodore, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter. However, I don't believe you have met Duke Slytherin." Duke Peverell gestured to the man beside him and Daphne lowered herself back into a deep curtsey.

"It is an honour to meet you, your grace."

"Thank you, Miss Greengrass." Duke Slytherin offered her his hand with a small smirk and Daphne kissed the Dukedom ring. "You may rise.

"Thank you, your grace."

"Thank you, your graces." Marcus bowed low beside her and then, with his hand on Daphne's arm, began backing away.

They moved to the other side of the hall and Daphne laughed slightly. "Wow. Everyone told me how scary he was, but nothing would have prepared me for that!"

Marcus nodded. "Yeah. He's kind of intense, isn't he?"

"His aura," Daphne said. "It just exudes magic. I've never felt more intimidated and out of my depth in my life. And you sat through meetings with him?"

"He's not always this formal and intense." Marcus said. "You know that, you've seen him in class, he can switch it on and off. But at this sort of thing he really needs to make the right impression."

Daphne laughed again. "I wish Tracey could see him like that. It would be hilarious."

Marcus chuckled and hugged her again.

"Did you know that Headmaster Snape is dating someone?" Daphne asked. "Some of the Weasley's were talking about it earlier."

"Look to your left." Marcus suggested.

Daphne looked across the hall and saw Headmaster Snape and a man with long red hair talking closely. "Who is that?"

"Doesn't the red hair give it away? That's Bill Weasley, the Weasley Heir. He's a curse breaker at Gringotts."

"That explains why the Weasleys were talking about it then." Daphne mused. "They make a rather striking pair, don't you think?"

Marcus looked between the pair and Daphne for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. "How should I know?"

Daphne giggled and leaned into him. "Well they do."

33-33-33

"Minerva." Harry allowed the woman a small smile and kissed her hand. "Welcome to my home."

Minerva curtseyed slightly. "Thank you, Harry."

Harry turned to Tom who was standing to his left. "Allow me to introduce you to Duke Slytherin, the guest of honour this evening. Tom, this is Noblewoman McGonagall."

Harry watched as Minerva curtseyed again, this time lower, and kissed Tom's ring.

"It is an pleasure to meet you, your grace."

Tom turned slightly to his left. "I presume you are acquainted with Noblewoman Bones?"

Madame Bones stepped forward and embraced Minerva gently. "Of course she is acquainted with me, Thomas. We have been good friends since we were children."

"How...delightful." Tom's smile was slightly strained.

"Would you excuse us for a moment, your grace?" Madame Bones curtseyed slightly to Harry.

Harry bowed slightly. "Of course, Madame Bones."

"Your grace." Minerva curtseyed again and then followed Madame Bones out of the hall.

"She's friends with McGonagall?" Tom groaned.

Harry chuckled. "What? Did you not realise that if you were to court a light witch, she would have light witch-friends?

Tom sneered at him. "There's a different between having light friends and being friends with _McGonagall_. She's Dumbledore's woman through and through."

"_Was_ Dumbledore's woman." Harry reminded him. "She's well on her way to coming around. For Merlin's sake, Tom, her manners were impeccable. It's not like she came in cursing you. Severus has convinced her to give you a chance."

For a moment it looked as though Tom was going to say something, but then the next guests arrived and Harry stepped forward to greet them.

"Lord and Lady Kirke. It is lovely to see you again. Welcome to my manor."

The couple bowed and curtseyed before rising. "Thank you, your grace. We are honoured to be invited."

Harry allowed them a small smile before turning to Tom. "Allow me to introduce Duke Slytherin. He is planning on taking an active role in our Wizengamot this year."

"Your grace." The Kirkes bowed and curtseyed again, and Tom bowed slightly in reply.

"It is an honour to meet you, Lord and Lady Kirke. "

"It has been over a century since we last had a Slytherin in our Wizengamot, your grace. Your presence will be very welcome." Lord Kirke bowed again slightly.

"Thank you."

When the Kirkes moved away Tom turned towards Harry. "I expected him to be more suspicious."

"I met with him last week, before Hogwarts started, and explained that you had just recently become the Head of the House of Slytherin and wanted to make a difference." Harry explained. "He thinks that the last few Heads of the House of Slytherin were just recluses who preferred the privacy of their manor to being members of society."

"And he believed you?" Tom asked.

"Why wouldn't he? Besides, he and I have the same goals for the Wizarding World. If I'm vouching for you, obviously you have similar goals to him as well." Harry turned his attention to the next guest who was approaching them. "Nobleman Wright. Welcome to my manor."

33-33-33

Lucius leant his head against the wall behind him. He was exhausted, and events never seemed to stop. Perhaps he had misjudged his energy levels when he agreed to become a Professor at Hogwarts. There was more work involved than he had expected. Between writing lesson plans, holding classes, and marking homework, he always seemed to be busy, and it was slowly wearing him down. He hadn't felt this tired since the spell had first taken effect two months earlier.

He took a moment to look around the hall where all the guests were mingling and dancing. Severus was conversing with the current Noblewoman Prince towards the edge of the room. Severus didn't have much to do with his cousins on his Mother's side of the family, but they always spoke briefly when the opportunity arose. Lucius imagined that Noblewoman Prince was probably enquiring as to Severus' relationship with Bill as the couple had danced together earlier in the evening. The House of Prince was only an Aged and Aristocratic House, and any joining between their House, and that of the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley would be pleasing to Noblewoman Prince. No matter how estranged Severus was from their family.

Rodolphus was engaged in a obviously flirtatious conversation with two younger blond women. Lucius rolled his eyes when they all laughed suddenly, the two women fluttering their eyelashes. Charlie was speaking to Percy and a young witch whom Lucius presumed was Audrey Marchbanks. Lucius was surprised to see Teddy, Blaise, and Draco, Neville, Fred and George talking. Though more surprising was the sight of the Dark Lord spinning Madame Bones around the dance floor.

Lucius saw Harry moving towards him slowly, stopping for a few seconds every few metres to exchanged greeting with a guest, and pushed himself of the wall.

"Are you alright, Lucius?" Harry looked concerned as he rested a hand on Lucius arm.

"I'm fine, Harry. Just a little weary." Lucius smiled weakly.

Harry frowned. "You're exhausted."

Lucius allowed himself a small shrug. "Yes. But there is little we can do about that now."

Wrapping a hand around Lucius' neck, Harry pulled him in for a small kiss. "You're right. We will speak of it tomorrow. Will you join me for a dance? Or do you wish to rest longer?"

Lucius took Harry's hand in his and nodded. "A dance would be lovely. I will rest tomorrow."

Harry sighed as he led them onto the dance floor. "Very well. But things need to change. You are too tired. Both Draco and Teddy have spoken to me about how worried they are for your health. Perhaps I could take on some of you marking? I could even teach some of your classes if you don't object. What do you have tomorrow?"

The song changed to a slow one and Lucius moved closer to his mate. "Introduction to the Wizarding World from nine till ten, then the Sixth Year class from one till three, and the Seventh Year class from three till four."

"Well, I'm teaching all morning. But I could take your afternoon classes, if you like?" Harry offered. "You need to rest more. I'm sure I understand the subject enough to teach, especially if I follow your lesson plans."

Lucius laughed softly. "Oh, you understand the subject plenty. You would have no problem teaching it. I would very much appreciate the additional time to rest, as long as you don't mind."

"Not at all." Harry assured him with a gentle squeeze. "There is less than two months until Severus expects the potion to be ready. Perhaps until then I can take a few of your classes regularly? I doubt Severus would mind."

Lucius let out a tired breath and leaned against his mate. "Thank you. I was unsure what to do. I shouldn't have accepted the position, I'm not well enough."

Harry kissed him again. "Nonsense. You will be plenty well enough for most of the year, and for these first few months I can help you. That's what I'm here for."

"What of you?" Lucius asked as the music changed again. "You're already busy, too busy."

"I am less busy than I was." Harry pointed out. "Besides maybe we can work out a trade. You can supervise the next Hogsmeade trip in my place. That should be restful enough. Maybe Rodolphus could meet you there for a drink."

"When is the next Hogsmeade trip?"

"In two weeks, I think. Severus would know for sure."

Lucius laughed again. "I'm sure he would. Did you see him and Bill dancing earlier?"

"Adorable, weren't they?" Harry smirked. "I still can't believe that Severus has agreed to date a Weasley."

"He doesn't hate them nearly as much as he pretends to. To my knowledge he has only really hated six people in his life."

Harry sighed. "My Father and his friends being four of them, I imagine."

"Yes. Though admittedly, they hated him just as much."

31-31-31

"They look so sweet."

Draco turned slightly so that he was facing Daphne. "Who do?"

"Your parents. Look, they're dancing together."

Draco turned again, and moved so that he was standing beside Daphne. He looked out onto the dance floor and found his parents amongst the dozen or so couples dancing.

"It's strange." Daphne continued. "Your Père is terrifying. So much more so than Duke Slytherin. But right now he just looks sweet."

"Sweet?" Draco watched as his Father leaned down to whisper something in his Père's ear. "I think they look kind of funny. Père is so much shorter than Father. Merlin, he's even shorter than Teddy."

They watched silently for a few minutes before Daphne spoke again. "You were right by the way."

"What about?"

"That meeting Duke Peverell outside Hogwarts would give me a completely different perspective on him. I don't think I'll ever see him as Harry Potter again. How is it possible that he has changed this much?"

"I'm not sure." Draco shrugged slightly. "I don't think he changed so much as stopped pretending to be a bumbling Gryffindor."

"What about Granger and Weasley?" Daphne asked. "They were always irritating, but now they seem to have reached a whole new level of insufferable."

"Yeah, I noticed. Uncle Severus and Père think that Weasel is the one who has been bullying the younger students. He's been targeting the younger Slytherins and the five Second Years who were sorted out of Slytherin."

"Granger is driving Millie crazy." Daphne said. "Did you see her face yesterday when Granger tried to correct Professor Lewis? I thought she was going to hex her for a moment there."

Draco chuckled. "Would have served Granger right if she had. Does she honestly think that she knows more about Muggle and Wizarding History than Professor Lewis does? Just because she got taught something in Muggleschool when she was eight, doesn't make it right."

"Merlin, is he still ranting on about Granger?" Charlie Weasley moved towards Draco and wrapped an arm around the younger wizards waist. "He's been going on about her all evening. If I wasn't so confident in my good looks, I might feel jealous."

Daphne giggled slightly as Draco looked confused for a second, before his face turned pink.

"That is gross, Charlie. Blurgh! I can't believe you said that." Draco lightly cuffed Charlie on the arm. "I think I would probably kill her after a day."

Charlie chuckled deeply and kissed Draco on the forehead. "I know, Dray, I know." Then he looked around the hall. "Do you know where my father and brothers are?"

"No, sorry." Draco shook his head. "Well, Bill is probably in a corner somewhere talking to Uncle Severus. Last time I saw Percy he was dancing with the witch he brought."

Daphne looked around the room to see if she could find any of the Weasleys amongst the crowd. "Is that your Dad? Talking to Noblewoman Prince?"

Charlie was silent for a moment before he laughed loudly. "So it is. I imagine they are talking about Bill and Severus. It seems to be creating quite the stir."

33-33-33

Daphne wasn't sure what version of Duke Peverell she would find when she entered the Dining Hall at Malfoy Manor. Would he be the Hogwarts Professor, or a the powerful Duke? She, along with the rest of the students who had attended the ball, had spent the night in one of the guest bedrooms. Duke Peverell had arranged for them to Floo back to Hogwarts after an early breakfast to ensure that they arrived in time for their classes.

She had never had breakfast at Malfoy Manor before, despite the many times she had eaten luncheon and dinner there, and so was unsure what to expect. She was surprised to realise that she was one of the first people to arrive, only the Weasley Heir, Headmaster Snape, and Professor Weasley were at the table.

Daphne paused at the door for a moment, unsure as to whether she should join the three men or wait until another student arrived. Headmaster Snape spotted her before she could make a decision.

"What are you waiting for, Miss Greengrass? A direct invitation? Come in, girl, don't hover. Especially not at this time of the morning."

Daphne curtseyed slightly, even though it was unnecessary – it wasn't as though any of the men were currently titled. She moved to sit beside Professor Weasley, who was easily the least intimidating of the three.

"Good morning, Headmaster, Professor, Mr. Weasley."

Mr. Weasley chuckled slightly. "No need to be so formal, Miss Greengrass was it? I don't think we've met. Call me Bill. Mr. Weasley is my Father." He paused and gave a wry grin. "Well, Mr. Weasley was my Father, before he accepted the Lordship that is."

Daphne looked towards Headmaster Snape, unsure how to respond. It wouldn't really be proper for her to call him by his first name.

Headmaster Snape scowled. "You might as well do as he says. He has very few manners and it is almost impossible to try and convince him to learn any."

Professor Weasley laughed. "I was like that once. Then the entire bloody Malfoy family starting bugging me to behave. 'Malfoy's don't swear, Charlie', 'Malfoy's don't shrug, Charlie', Malfoy's don't put their feet on furniture, Charlie', you're going to be a Lord, Charlie, you have to learn to act like one, Charlie." He pouted towards his brother. "You're going to be a Lord too. Why don't you have to learn all the boring rules?"

Mr. Weasley, Bill, smirked. "Two reasons. One, I already know the rules and can behave myself if I need too. And, two, I'm not going to be a _Malfoy_ Lord. Us Weasley's are much more casual about the whole business. We don't have to act as though we have staffs up our arses all the time."

Daphne giggled slightly when she noticed that the entire Malfoy family were standing in the doorway.

"I take offence to that, Bill." Duke Peverell grinned as both Weasley's jumped in surprise.

"A fence?" One of the Weasley twins asked as the two of then walked through the door on either side of Lord Longbottom.

"Where on earth are you taking a fence at this time of the morning?" The other twin asked.

"You know," Lord Malfoy smirked as he snuggled up next to Duke Peverell in a dining chair that had been transfigured to fit the both of them. "If anyone in this room needs some etiquette lessons it's you two. I think Neville has his work cut out for him."

"Oh." Both of the twins gasped in unison, each putting a hand over their heart.

"That was hurtful, Lucy. I think I might cry." One of the twins, the one who was now sitting between Bill and Lord Longbottom, said in wounded voice.

The other twin, who was sitting on the other side of Lord Longbottom, sniffed loudly and mimed wiping away a tear. "Just horrible, isn't he Gred?"

"Absolutely, Forge. Cut us right to the quick!"

They both leant in front of Lord Longbottom so that they could share and grin, before turning their towards Lord Malfoy. "We're so very proud."

"Oh, shut it." Professor Weasley groused in good humour as he served Draco, who was snuggled up against him, some fruit. "This is exactly what I was talking about. Whenever I act like that, it's all 'Malfoy's don't joke, Charlie', 'Malfoy's don't pout, Charlie,' 'Malfoy's don't smile, Charlie."

Duke Peverell laughed. "Oh, suck it up. I had to learn all of the rules on my own. You at least have caring instructors." He turned towards Draco. "Where are Teddy and Blaise? They should be down by now."

Draco shrugged. "I don't know. But they're probably in the alcove somewhere since you wouldn't let them share a room."

Duke Peverell scowled and conjured a Patronus wandlessly. "If you two aren't in the Dining Hall in three minutes you will both be serving detention for a week!" The jaguar Patronus bounded out of the room and then Duke Peverell turned back to the table with a grin. "That only leaves Arthur and Rodolphus. Any idea where they are?"

"We're right here." Lord Lestrange called from the doorway. "Sorry we're late, we didn't get much sleep last night."

Headmaster Snape scowled and then pinched the bridge of his nose. "Do I want to know why?"

Lord Lestrange laughed as he and Lord Weasley sat down next to one another. "Probably not. Though I will say one thing. Arthur is very generously proportioned where it counts. I have no idea why I didn't initiate anything at Hogwarts."

"Ew!" Both the Weasley twins exclaimed loudly, their faces scrunched up in exaggerated disgust.

"Yes, I remember." Lord Malfoy smirked.

This time it was Draco who scrunched his face up is disgust. "Father!"


	34. Chapter 34

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

34-34-34

Hermione wasn't entirely sure when it had started, but something had gone incredibly wrong. Just months ago all her plans had been on track. Harry had been oblivious, naïve and uneducated – especially about the important things. Professor Dumbledore had promised that as long as she stuck close to Harry, and did everything he asked, that she would be influential and powerful when she graduated. She and Ron had been secretly dating for almost a year, and she had constructed plans to ensure that he would be the next Lord Weasley (thereby making her the next Lady Weasley). It had been a great stroke of luck finding out that the House of Weasley was Ancient and Noble. And, even if Ron wasn't able to claim the title, Professor Dumbledore had promised to completely abolish all of the titled Houses anyway. Opening up plenty of opportunities for muggleborns to join the Wizengamot

But now everything had turned to custard. Harry had somehow managed to become Duke Peverell, which apparently made him powerful. Not only that, but Harry had found out that she had been spying on him, and he had married a Death Eater. A male Death Eater! And somehow he was teaching at Hogwarts, and had gotten Professor Dumbledore arrested, and Mr. Weasley had become Lord Weasley. How had everything gone so wrong?!

She looked up quickly when she realised that the rest of the students in her Politics class had risen to their feet, and then slowly copied them – feeling self concious at being the only one sitting. When Hermione realised that the reason they were all standing was because Harry had walked in, she almost sat down again. Why should they all stand? Harry was the same age as they were. Just because his ancestors had been powerful, didn't automatically make him special or important. He wasn't even that smart. She didn't know how he'd managed to get Masteries, she had always gotten way better grades than him. He must have cheated.

Hermione watched in disgust as all the other students bowed and curtseyed lowly, as though they were greeting the Queen or something. God, sometimes she really hated wizards! Harry walked to the front of the class and then turned around. He looked around the room, his gaze stopping on her for a moment, before moving on.

"You may sit."

Hermione was probably the first to sit, as she hadn't had to stand out of a curtsey first. Once she was seated she wanted to kick herself. Why had she obeyed him? It wasn't like he had any authority over her, no matter what he thought. Soon Professor Dumbledore would be back and everything would return to the way it should be.

"Good afternoon." Harry said, moving around to sit in Professor Malfoy's seat.

Just who did he think he was? Sure Hermione wasn't exactly fond of Malfoy, but still he was a Professor – a proper Professor – and Harry couldn't just waltz in here and sit in the Professor's chair.

"My Consort is unavailable this afternoon so I will be teaching today's class." Harry said looking around the room seriously. "As I have taught each of you already, I trust that I don't need to remind any of you that I am in fact a Professor in this school. My Consort has informed me that he runs this class much like a Wizengamot session, particularly in regards to manners and titles. Because of that, any disrespect towards me in this class will be much further reaching than it would be otherwise."

Hermione rolled her eyes. God, Harry was so annoying. What on earth did he think he could do to them? Well, maybe he could get the others in trouble or something, but really, what did he think he could do to her? Tell on her to her parents? All Hermione would have to do was go home and paint Harry as a mean teacher out to get her and they would be on her side. Besides, if he tried anything too bad – not that she thought he was capable of it – but if he did, Dumbledore would protect her.

"I'm sure you all know that on Thursday the Wizengamot will be meeting for the first time in a few months." Harry continued. "There will be a number of new members sitting in on the session, myself and Duke Zabini included. Another new member is Duke Slytherin who will be introducing a new proposal. My Consort received permission to discuss the Proposal with you today. On the desk in front of you is a copy of the entire Proposal. This has been sent to all members of Wizengamot so that they will be familiar with it on Thursday. You can read through it in your own time if you're interested, but today we will be focussing on the summary on page three."

Hermione looked down and blinked. She could have sworn that the folder lying innocently on her desk hadn't been there earlier. She looked towards Harry suspiciously, but he had his folder open and the words 'Muggleborn Proposal' were being written magically on the board behind him.

"As you all know." Harry said after a moment. "Currently muggleborn witches and wizards are only told of their magic the Summer before they start their first year at Hogwarts. They receive very little information about what to expect from our world, or how our culture differs from their own. This has led to problems, especially in regard to muggleborn and purewizard relations.

"Witches and wizards who are brought up in our world often feel as though muggleborns have no respect for their culture or traditions. Unfortunately for the witches and wizards who are muggle raised, it can be almost impossible to learn about wizarding culture as very few people are willing to teach them."

Hermione sneered. Why on earth would a muggleborn want to learn wizarding culture? They were so incredibly backwards. The purebloods should just accept that their traditions were out of date and needed to be discarded.

"The first section of Duke Slytherin's Proposal advises that muggle raised witches and wizards be informed of their magic at a much younger age. And that, instead of attending a muggle primary school, they attend introductory lessons in our world from the age of eight. He suggests that they be taught our history, culture, and traditions before they attend Hogwarts in an effort to help them adjust better in our society.

"In the second section, Duke Slytherin suggests that a new department be formed in our Ministry. The department, which he refers to as the Muggleborn Protection Department, would primarily oversee muggleborn students in the muggle world to ensure that they are cared for and nurtured. The department would also be tasked with monitoring that the muggles who are aware of our world are upholding the Secrecy Act."

Hermione snorted quietly and then looked away from Harry's pointed glare. She didn't want him to overreact and kick her out of the class like he had Ron. Muggleborns didn't need protection from the real world, they needed protection from the purebloods in the magical world. And what use were more classes if they weren't about magic? She couldn't wait until she was on the Wizengamot. Then she would be able to stop idiot laws like this going through. The last thing the magical world needed was for the muggleborns to brainwashed at an early age. If there were no witches or wizards like her, muggleborns who wanted to make the magical world better – more like the normal one – how would their society improve?

34-34-34

Chief Warlock, Lord Bartholomew Kirke – Thom to his friends – shared a look with Minster of Magic as the members of the Wizengamot milled around. Minister Shacklebolt had been surprisingly easy to work alongside, especially since he seemed to be a lot more neutral than light. When Harry had first met with him about having Shacklebolt elected, Thom had been wary of the idea. After all, it was commonly known that Shacklebolt was Dumbledore's man, but Harry had been right – as per usual – and the wizard made a brilliant minister. Certainly a whole lot better than Fudge had ever been.

Thom looked around the room for Harry and, after a moment, found him conversing with Duke Slytherin. Both Dukes were a mystery. Duke Peverell was barely seventeen, but seemed far older than his years and was probably one of the most intimidating wizards Thom had ever met. And Duke Slytherin, who would be the first Duke of Slytherin to sit in the Wizengamot in over one hundred years.

The two Duke's were mysterious enough on their own, but if one added in the fact that they seemed to know one another they became a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, wrapped in a invisibility cloak. Besides which, their plans for the Wizarding World were inspired. As a neutral wizard who had been a member of Slytherin House during his years at Hogwarts, Thom found it reassuring to meet a descendant of Salazar Slytherin who wasn't crazy and evil like You-Know-You had been.

Thom glanced towards Shacklebolt again and then stood up. "Sonorus. Good morning, your graces, Minister, my lords, noblemen, and other distinguished members of the Wizengamot. If you could all take your seats please, we will begin."

After removing the amplifying spell, as once the Wizengamot Session was started voices would be applied naturally, Thom sat down and watched quietly as the seats were slowly filled. It was strange having three Dukes in the chamber, Thom could only remember there ever being two Dukes simultaneously present at the Wizengamot in his lifetime.

Once everyone was seated Thom stood up again. "I, Bartholomew Kirke the third, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Kirke, Chief Warlock of England's Wizengamot, do declare the thirty eighth thousandth, six hundredth and second Wizengamot Assembly to be in session. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Minister Shacklebolt on being inducted into the office of Minister of Magic. I also wish to welcome our newest members, Duke Peverell, Duke Slytherin, Duke Zabini, Lord Weasley and Lord Longbottom."

34-34-34

Teddy walked around the corner of the corridor and then broke into a run. Was that little Madelaina Flint slumped against the wall? This had been happening ever since the beginning of term, younger students who had any connection to the Slytherin House were being beaten up and then spelled unconscious. Unfortunately none of the victims had seen their attackers face. Once Teddy reached Madelaina he knelt down and was relieved to note that, from what he could see, she was relatively unhurt. There was no black eyes, blood, or broken bones like there had been on some of the other victims.

Teddy pointed his wand at his throat. "Sonorus. I need help! There's a student injured on the fourth floor."

Teddy had barely removed his wand from his throat when he heard the faint pop of Apparation behind him. He turned around in relief, his Père and Duke Slytherin were the only wizards he knew who was able to Apparate inside the castle – a newly discovered effect of their links to the Founders.

"It's Madelaina Flint." Teddy said as he moved aside to allow his Père access to the unconscious girl. "There was no one else around when I found her."

His Père performed a complicated scanning spell, one that Teddy had only ever seen trained Healers use, before looking up. "She's alright. She'll have a few bruises and a headache, but nothing that some of Severus' potions won't cure." He smiled. "You did a good job, Teddy. Good thinking, calling out like that. It was definitely more effective than Astoria Greengrass' attempt."

Teddy smirked. Astoria had found an injured Second Year earlier in the week and, when she had tried to run for help had gotten lost in her panic. A few minutes later a Seventh Year Prefect had found the Second Year and had used their Prefect Badge to call for help. Astoria had resurfaced forty minutes later in tears.

"Is she alright?"

Teddy turned around quickly and saw Professor Lewis, the witch, jogging towards them.

"She's unconscious." Père said. "But otherwise she's fine. I'd rather not revive her until she's in the Hospital Wing though. She'll wake up with quite the headache."

Teddy watched as his Père cast his Patronus and gave it instructions for Headmaster Snape, Professor Weasley and Professor Flitwick to meet him in the Hospital Wing. Then his Père cast the Featherweight Charm and then carefully lifted Madelaina into his arms.

"Can I do anything, Père?"

"I need you to go to my quarters and tell your Father what happened. Ask him to contact Lord Flint." Père answered. "You need to be quick."

Teddy nodded and then turned around. He sprinted down the hallway, thanking Merlin for both the extra fitness training his Père had been giving him and the change in uniform this year – it would have been a lot harder to run in robes. When he reached the portrait that guarded his parents quarters he spat the password and then rushed in.

His Father who had been lying on the couch sat up quickly and pointed his wand at Teddy, before blinking confusedly.

"Sorry, you startled me."

Teddy moved forward quickly. "Père sent me. Madelaina Flint was attacked. I found her on the Fourth Floor. She's unconscious but Père said she's going to be fine. You need to call Marcus, Lord Flint."

His Father who had stood up immediately after hearing of the attack moved towards the fireplace. "Thank you, Teddy. Sit down for a moment and calm down. There's some chocolate on the table, have a few pieces while I call Marcus."

Teddy nodded and went to get the chocolate before sitting on the couch. His heart was racing and he couldn't stop his leg from bouncing up and down. He rubbed his hands together before standing up and pacing. Merlin! He had been so scared to see Madelaina on the floor. She had looked so young and breakable slumped against the wall. He wondered if that was how he had looked all the times his birth Father had beaten him unconscious. He turned towards his Father who was stepping away from the fireplace.

"Is he coming?"

"Yes. He and his Mother will be here in a few minutes. They'll Floo in here, so I'm going to wait for them." His Father replied calmly. "Come here."

Teddy moved quickly towards his Father. The minute he was within arms reach, he found himself wrapped in a hug.

"You did wonderfully, Teddy." His Father said gently. "I imagine it brought back some memories though."

Teddy nodded roughly and stepped away to begin pacing again. "She was just so little! And helpless! She's only just turned fourteen! Why on earth would any one want to hurt her? I don't understand. Why would any one want to hurt someone younger than them? What could they possibly do to deserve it?"

His Father sighed. "There is nothing anyone could do to deserve being beaten up, Teddy. This wasn't about what Madelaina deserved. Whoever attacked her is sick, Teddy. They don't understand that it's not alright to hurt other people, or if they do, they don't care."

Teddy ran a hand through his hair. "I bet it was the Weasel!"

His Father smirked slightly. "Perhaps. But it does Madelaina no good for us to make random accusations. Your Père and Severus will catch whoever is doing this and it will be over."

"It won't be over though." Teddy shook his head roughly trying to dislodge the tears in his eyes. "It stays with you. I never forgot anything that my Father, Nott I mean, did to me. Even now that I have a new family, and a better father, I still remember! It doesn't just go away."

His Father moved towards him again and wrapped him in another hug. "I know. But you can move on. It gets easier every day, doesn't it? You're settling into our family so wonderfully, Teddy. We're so thrilled to have you. And things have been getting easier. You don't flinch very much anymore, and you have no problems asking your Père or I for something anymore."

Teddy nodded against his Father's shoulder. "Yeah."

"It'll be like that for Madelaina too." His Father reassured him. "Every day she'll get a little bit better, until one day it's just a bad memory that she barely even remembers."

"Ok." Teddy hugged his Father for a moment longer before stepping back and wiping his eyes. "Thank you."

"No problem." His Father smiled. "I'm always here to listen. Now, Marcus and the Dowager Lady Flint will be here in a minute. Could you go and get Daphne for me? Marcus asked me to have her meet him at the Hospital Wing. She'd want to be there."

Teddy wiped his eyes again and then gave up and cast a Freshening Spell on himself. "Yeah, alright. Should I tell her what happened?"

"Yes. But only once you're away from every one else." His Father replied. "We'll keep Madelaina's name out of this for as long as we can.

34-34-34

"From what Daphne has told me, Maddy is the seventh student that has been attacked since the term started three weeks ago! Why haven't you stopped it yet?"

Harry sighed as he entered Severus office. Marcus Flint was pacing around the room angrily, as his Mother – the Dowager Lady Flint – was sitting in one of the seats crying daintily into her handkerchief. Severus looked exhausted and when he saw Harry at the doorway waved him in.

The Dowager Lady Flint stood and curtseyed upon noticing Harry. "Good afternoon, Duke Peverell."

Flint bowed jerkily. "Your grace."

"Flint." Harry nodded towards the older Lord and then his mother. "My lady. My deepest apologies for what happened to your sister. We are doing everything we can to find the attacker."

Flint scowled. "With all due respect, your grace, maybe you need to try something new. Students have been being attacked for three weeks! Surely you should have been able to stop him by now."

Harry nodded. "You're understandably upset, Marcus, but you need to let Severus and I do our jobs. A new surveillance system was put into place yesterday and I am confident that we will have caught the attacker by the end of the day. But for that to happen, Severus and I need to be given time to work on it."

"By the end of the day?" Flint looked doubtful.

"Yes." Harry bowed slightly. "So how about you go and spend some time with Madelaina? I assure you that you will be among the first to know when we have information."

The Dowager Lady Flint curtseyed again. "Thank you, your grace. I think Marcus and I will do exactly that. I wish you the best on your hunt."

Harry smirked. "Thank you, my lady."

Flint bowed to Harry, looking put out, and then followed his mother out of the office.

"A new surveillance system?" Severus asked, his tone irritated.

Harry nodded and pulled the Marauder's Map and a pair of shrunken Omnioculars out of his pocket. "I didn't tell you about it earlier because it's mostly due to something my Father and his friends invented, and I didn't think that would put you in a good mood."

Severus scowled at him.

"Exactly so." Harry smirked. He opened the map. "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."

Harry handed the map to Severus who spent a moment looking it over before slamming into his desk.

"Those good for nothing bastards!"

"Hey!" Harry protested rolling his eyes. "Look, you have a point. And I'm sure my Father was perfectly capable of being a bastard. But he was still my Dad."

Severus just scowled.

"Anyway." Harry resized the omnioculars. "For the last thirty six hours a very bored House Elf has been pointing a pair of these at the map. They only record for two hours each, so there were eighteen pairs used. This pair is the one that was recording during the time Madelaina was attacked. It should be able to show us who was with Madelaina in that corridor."

Severus' scowl didn't lessen any but he did lean forward in his chair.

Harry turned the ommioculars on, held them up to his eyes and searched the image of the map for Madelaina Flint's name, Once he found it near the library he sped the recording up, following her movement until she neared the corridor she had been found in.

Just as Madelaina's name reached the point where she had been attacked, Ronald Weasley's name turned a separate corner and moved quickly towards her name. Ron's name stayed in corridor for a few minutes before running off. Harry sped up the recording and then watched as the next name to arrive was Teddy's and then his own.

He re-wound the recording until just before Madelaina entered the corridor and then handed the omnioculars across the desk to Severus.

"It was Ron Weasley."

Severus' scowl darkened and he pulled the omnioculars up to his eyes. A few minutes later he put them down and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"We need to speak to Arthur."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. It would probably be best if Bill and Charlie were there too. Arthur's having a hard few months."

Severus stood up and moved to the fireplace. He grabbed a handful of power and then moved to kneel in front of the fire.

"Weasley Manor."

Harry ran a hand through his hair and sighed. It wasn't that he was surprised that Ron was the one who had been attacking students, he had been near the top of the suspect list. It was just hard to believe that he hadn't noticed that Ron's cruel streak ran that deep.

Harry pulled out his wand and sent a patronus to summon Charlie. Luckily he wouldn't be pulling the other wizard out of class as all classes had been cancelled due to the attack.

Severus stood up and moved back to his chair. "Arthur will Floo through in a minute. He's just contacting Bill. We'll need Minerva and Georgiana as well. They're Weasley's Head of House and Dean." He produced his patronus and soon it too was sent out of the office.

Harry picked up the omnioculars. "It would be best if these were able to project an image so that the entire group could watch it. Any idea how to do that?"

Severus smirked slightly. "Has the great Harry Potter found something that he doesn't know how to do?"

Harry scowled. "Shut it."

Severus' smirk grew and he held a hand out for the omnioculars. Once Harry had passed it to him he placed it on the desk.

"Exertus Imaginem."

Harry scowled again. "Seriously? Project image? That's the spell?"

Severus leaned back in his chair looking smug. "It's the same spell that's used for projecting a memory from a pensive."

Harry continued to scowl at both the omnioculars and Severus, but looked up as the chime sounded.

"Come in." Severus called.

Charlie came through the door looking worried. "What happened? Was their another attack since this morning?"

"No." Severus gestured at one of the seats. "Sit down."

Charlie sat and then glanced between Harry and Severus. "Why am I here?"

"Your Father and Bill will be here in few minutes, we'll explain it then." Harry answered.

Charlie looked even more worried at that.

Arthur was the next to arrive, Flooing in and then taking the remaining seat beside Charlie.

Minerva and Georgiana arrived together and Minerva conjured two chairs for them.

Bill arrived barely a minute later, he looked just as worried as Charlie and Arthur did as he conjured himself a seat beside Harry.

"Arthur, Bill." Severus started. "Another student was attacked today, Madelaina Flint. Luckily Harry had installed a new form of surveillance yesterday and we were able to see the identity of her attacker."

Arthur paled. "Please don't tell me..."

"It was Ron, Arthur." Harry said gently. "You've heard of the Marauder's Map, haven't you?"

Arthur nodded jerkily. "Yes. The twins showed it to me. I knew who made it of course, your Father and his friends were never exactly subtle."

Both Minerva and Severus snorted at that.

"I used omnioculars to record the map, so that when there was another attack we could see who had been in the corridor. Would you like to see the recording?" Harry asked.

"Yes." Bill nodded. "Yeah, I think we need to see this."

Charlie nodded in agreement.

Severus activated the omnioculars and everyone in the room watched the image they projected. Madelaina walking into the corridor, Ron arriving, Ron leaving.

"And you're sure it's him?" Bill asked. "Nobody entered the corridor afterwards?"

Harry shook his head. "No. The next person to enter the corridor was Teddy a few minutes later and he's the one who called for help."

"Fuck!" Charlie growled and stood up violently, before falling back into his seat. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

Arthur lifted his head out of his hands for a moment. "I don't...What do we do now?"

"I will have to expel him." Severus said. "And I will have to inform Madame Bones of what has happened here. It is very likely that he will face official charges, especially since he is of age."

Harry looked between the three Weasley men and then at Severus. "Could Arthur, Bill, Charlie and I have a moment? I'm sure you, Minerva and Georgianna have things you need to discuss as well."

Severus nodded. "You can use my quarters. The password is Goblins."

Harry smiled in thanks and then stood up. He lead the Weasley men to the landing, just outside of Severus' office.

"Goblins."

The wall opposite the door into Severus' office rippled slightly and Harry walked through it. The Weasley's followed after him and and soon they were all sitting around Severus' incredibly comfy sitting room.

They were silent for a moment before Charlie whacked his head against the back of the chair. "Fuck! I knew it was a possibility, Ron's always been a bit angry, but I didn't think he was capable of beating up little kids."

"I'm so sorry." Arthur said. "Whatever I did, however I failed as a parent, that made Ron into this kind of wizard. I am so sorry!"

"No." Bill moved forward quickly and took his Father's hands. "It wasn't you, Dad. You have always been brilliant. The best Father we could ask for. This is all on Ron."

"No." Arthur shook his head. "He's only seventeen. Molly and I must have done something wrong."

"Look, maybe Mum wasn't the best example of a mother Ron could have." Charlie said roughly. "She encouraged Ron to help Ginny abort the babies for fucks sake, but you had nothing to do with that. And Ron was still the one to make the decision. This isn't your fault, Dad. No more than it is mine and Bill's."

"None of you are to blame." Harry said firmly.

"What do I do?" Arthur asked brokenly. "I know I said that I would give him one more chance before disowning him, but he's my son. How can I disown him? I love him."

"Why don't you talk to him?" Harry suggested. "Figure out where his head is at."

Arthur thought for a moment and then clasped his hands together with a nod. "Yes, I think that's the best idea."


	35. Chapter 35

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Slightly shorter chapter today, sorry. I also want to apologize in advance for the cliffhanger at the end. My third and final apology is for the language in this chapter. I was rather embarrassed to read through this and realise how often Ron swore.

Thanks for reading

35-35-35

"What the fuck do you want?"

Charlie raised an eyebrow, unimpressed by his younger brother's posturing. It had been decided that he would be the one to bring Ron to the room they would all be talking in. Something to do with causing the least suspicion since he had good reason to be at Hogwarts.

"We need to talk."

"Like hell we do!" Ron sneered. "You think you can come here and order me to talk to you? Like we're family? We're not family! Not any more. Not since you abandoned Mum and became Malfoy Junior's whore!"

Charlie rolled his eyes. "Don't be an arse. Just come and talk to me. It'll only take ten minutes."

"Or what?"

Charlie crossed his arms, thoroughly unimpressed. "Or I will stun you, tie you up, and refuse to release you until you fucking talk to me. You know I will."

Ron narrowed his eyes. "I hate you!"

"Oh shut it." Charlie ignored the pain Ron's words gave him and lead his reluctant brother towards his quarters, where his Dad and Bill were waiting for them.

Once Charlie reached the portrait guarding his quarters he gave the password and then gestured for Ron to step inside first.

Ron complied with a sneer and Charlie followed quickly behind.

The portrait door had shut behind them by the time Ron noticed their Father and Bill.

"What?" Ron spun around to scowl at Charlie, his complexion quickly turning red. "What the hell is going on?! You tricked me! I don't want to talk to any of you! Let me the fuck out!"

Charlie shook his head and gave Ron a shove towards one of the chairs. "Sit down."

"Fuck off!"

"Sit down, Ron." Charlie repeated. "What else are you going to do? Fight your way out?"

Ron looked around the room for a moment before stomping over to the chair furthest from their Dad and Bill and sitting down belligerently.

"I don't want to talk to you! What the hell do you want?"

Charlie moved to sit in the chair between Ron and the door before sharing a look with Bill. Their Dad was staring at Ron, half in shock and half heartbroken.

"Why..." Their Dad cleared his throat. "Why don't you want to talk to us?"

"You're all fucking traitors!" Ron sneered. "You abandoned Mum and betrayed Dumbledore!"

"There are things about Mum and Dad's marriage that you don't know, Ron." Bill said firmly. "Dad didn't just abandon her."

Ron laughed darkly. "You think I don't know? You think that you and the great Harry fucking Potter are the only ones to know anything? You think I don't know all about Uncle Casper's stupidity? And Mum's genius plan to marry Dad? Well I do!"

Charlie stared at his younger brother. How was this the little Ronniekins he had taught to fly a broom?

"Then surely you understand that Dad didn't just abandon Mum." Bill said slowly. "He was blackmailed into their relationship from the start."

"Well maybe he fucking deserved it!" Ron yelled, erupting to his feet. "Did you ever think of that? All the rich, snooty purebloods walking around with their big fucking egos, only marrying other priggish purebloods to keep the money in the family. Maybe the world would be a better place if more people were as smart as Mum. And then he went and tricked her out of what was due to her? Because he didn't think she was _good_ enough to be Lady Weasley."

"No," Their Dad gasped. "That wasn't why! It wasn't because she wasn't good enough. I would never..."

"Yes, it was!" Charlie interrupted. "Mum was never good enough to be Lady Weasley. Not because of her blood, or her family, but because she thought it was alright to blackmail Dad into marrying her."

"You, you, you..." Ron dived at Charlie and attempted to punch him.

Charlie stood up and grabbed Ron's arms, holding him still. "Sit down."

"You bastard!" Ron yelled still struggling.

"Sit down, before I make you!" Charlie growled in Ron's ear, and was gratified when his brother stopped struggling.

Once they were all seated again, Ron looking even more hostile than before and their Dad looking even more heartbroken, Bill leaned forward.

"They know that you've been the one attacking the kids, Ron."

Ron looked shocked for a moment, but then recovered. "So?"

"So?" Their Dad stood up and started pacing. "That's all you have to say? You've been attacking children! You broke their bones!"

Ron sneered. "They deserved it!"

"Why?" Charlie asked. "What on earth could they have done to deserve it?"

"They're fucking Slytherins!" Ron yelled. "They deserve whatever the hell they get!"

"What about Madelaina?" Bill asked. "She's in Ravenclaw."

"She's a Flint! They're Slytherins, all of them. Just because she tricked the Hat into putting her into Ravenclaw, doesn't make her any less of a Slytherin." Ron bunched his hands into fists. "She was probably just planning on torturing her classmates in their sleep!"

"She's a fourteen year old witch!" Bill yelled. "What the hell happened to you, Ron? How do you think that this is ok?"

Ron just crossed his arms and glared.

"They're calling Madame Bones." Charlie said. "You're probably going to be officially charged with assault of a minor."

"They can do what they want." Ron said. "When Dumbledore gets out he'll make them pay."

Bill shook his head. "Dumbledore isn't going to get out. He's probably going to be put in Azkaban for a long time."

Ron scoffed. "You think Azkaban can hold him? He's the greatest wizard in the world. How do you plan to get him there, ask him nicely? There isn't a single wizard who could force him."

Charlie chuckled sadly. "Actually I can think of two who probably could."

"Ron." Their Dad leaned forward, his expression pleading. "I can probably get Madame Bone's to drop the charges, at least save you from having to go to Azkaban, but you'd have to agree to go to a school in Canada – a special one for kids who have behavioural problems."

"Behavioural problems?" Ron laughed. "No chance in hell! You think I want your help? Fuck off!"

Charlie met Bill's eyes for a moment before looking back to his Father who was looking even more broken than earlier.

"I want to help you!" Their Dad pleaded. "You're my son and I love you. What can I do to prove that to you?"

"Give me money!" Ron said.

"What?"

"We've always been poor!" Ron burst out. "And I hated it! And now I found out that we could have been rich! I could have had all the money I wanted! But you kept it from us!" He glared at their Dad. "And now, when you've finally decided that maybe you don't want to be poor anymore, you won't give us any money! You're keeping it to yourself! You're just like all the other rich purebloods!"

"This is about money?" Charlie asked in disbelief. "We weren't poor, Ron. Sure we weren't rich, but we weren't poor either. We had everything we needed."

"Yeah, but second hand!" Ron sneered again and turned his face away. "Do you have any idea how humiliating it was to always have hand me downs? And now you have all the money you could ever need and you divorced Mum to keep it from her!"

"No." Bill shook his head. "The only way he could get the money was to divorce Mum. Because Mum blackmailed Dad into marrying her, he took an oath not to use any of the Weasley family money while he was still bonded to her."

"Ron." Their Dad moved forward in his chair slightly. "Is that why you agreed to spy on Harry?"

"Yeah, at first. But he deserved it. He's just as bad as Malfoy! Flashing his money in front of me, buying me things, treating me like I needed charity."

"You're a prat!" Charlie growled. "He was probably just trying to be friendly."

Ron snorted. "Of course you'd take his side."

Charlie looked up as the chime for the door went off. "Damn, looks like our time is up."

Their Dad stood up and took a step towards Ron. "You're probably going to be arrested now, but I'll come with you."

Ron stood up as well. "Are you going to give me, Mum and Ginny the money we deserve?"

"What?" Their Dad looked confused. "I don't..."

"Then don't fucking bother!" Ron snarled. "If you're not going to give me money then just fuck off and leave me alone. Disown me for all I care."

"Ron!" Their Dad moved to place a hand on Ron's arm, but then let it drop when Ron stepped away to avoid it. "Don't leave like this."

"Don't you get it, Dad?" Ron sneered. "I hate you! I wish you weren't my Father. In fact," He pulled out his wand. "I, Ronald Bilius Weasley, do so declare my independence from the Ancient and Noble House of Weasley. From this day forth, I shall be known as Ronald Bilius Prewett."

Charlie stared at his brother in shock. "Fuck! Why would you..."

"I hate you!" Ron shouted. "How many times do I have to say it? I hate you! This way I never have to speak to any of you again."

"Oh, Ron." Bill sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Come on then."

Charlie moved ahead and opened the portrait door for them, nodding at the Aurors who were standing at the door.

"We're looking for a Ronald Weasley." The first Auror asked. "I'm Matthew Williamson and this is Reggie Smelters."

Charlie stepped aside to show Ron standing behind him. "Yeah, ok. Though if you look at your papers I think you'll find that his name has changed."

Williamson frowned slightly and looked at the parchment in his hand. "Oh. He was disowned?"

"He disowned himself." Bill replied, pushing Ron forward slightly.

The Auror's eyebrows rose. "Oh." He looked at Ron. "Mr. Ronald Prewett?"

Ron gave a jerky nod. "Yeah."

"You're under arrest. You are being charged with Assault of a Minor. Please come with us quietly."

Ron scowled and shrugged their Father's hand of his shoulder. "Fine."

35-35-35

"I'm really sorry." Harry told Arthur and his five oldest sons, his only sons now.

"It's not your fault." Bill said. "If anyone's to blame, besides Ron that it, it's Mum."

"I know." Harry put his hands on his knees. "I hate to see any of my friends or family upset."

"Have they decided..."

"What's going to..."

"Happen to him?" The twins were curled against Neville, looking devastated.

Harry was pleased that despite their emotional distress they hadn't reverted to splitting sentences word for word again. It said good things about their bonding with Neville.

"As Bill said earlier, the original charge was Assault of a Minor." Harry replied. "However, because of the amount of evidence against him, they were able to question him with Veritaserum. They haven't decided on the exact charges yet, but it's looking like there will be at least eight Assault of Minor charges."

"Oh Merlin!" Percy closed his eyes. "If he's found guilty of all eight then he'll get two years in Azkaban at least."

Harry looked around the room, at Arthur who was crying silently into a distraught Bill's shoulder; Charlie who was holding Draco so tightly that it looked painful; the twins who were practically sitting on Neville's knees – gripping each other's hands tightly; Percy who appeared pale and nauseous; and finally at Lucius who was leaning against his side, looking tired. Damn Ron and his selfishness! Had he even considered how much his actions would impact his family?

"And the girl who was hurt today?" Percy asked after a minute. "Is she alright?"

Harry nodded. "Madelaina's fine. Madame Pomfrey is holding her overnight, but I think that's just because she enjoys torturing students that way."

The twins both chuckled weakly. "Only some students."

"She never held us overnight."

"Well, she did once..."

"When we were little ickle first years..."

"But we accidentally blew up her office..."

"And she never held us overnight again."

Arthur nodded and everyone laughed slightly. "I remember that. I came to school to check on you and Minerva pulled me into her office and asked me why I hadn't warned her about you. Apparently she had been expecting you to be just like Bill, Charlie, and Percy – polite and well behaved."

"Hey!" Charlie protested. "I was never polite or well behaved!"

"I was." Percy said. "And I'm damn proud of it."

"Compared to the twins?" Arthur pointed out. "You were all well behaved."

The twins just smirked.

35-35-35

Draco watched as Daphne hugged Marcus tightly. The couple hadn't seen one another in two weeks. Not since Marcus had come to Hogwarts when Madelaina had been attacked. He snickered as the pair moved quickly into one of the nearby alleys, most likely to make out.

"What do you want to do? We have thirty minutes until we're supposed to meet Daphne and Marcus at the Three Broomsticks."

"Can we go to Honeydukes first?" Teddy asked, leaning into Blaise. "I only have three Pepper Imps left."

"Yuck." Draco sneered. "I hate those things. It's so undignified, blowing black smoke out of your ears and nose."

Teddy just rolled his eyes." Don't be a snob, Dray."

"I'm not! It made my nose feel funny."

"Your nose looked funny too." Blaise chuckled. "I can't believe that it turned your nose black."

Draco pouted. "It's not my fault that my magic reacted to it. Who wants black smoke shooting out of their nose anyway?"

"Uh, me!" Teddy pointed out as he held the door of Honeydukes open for Draco and Blaise. "I love it. It makes my nose tingle, in a good way."

"Tingle?" Draco scoffed. "It makes your nose tingle? I hope you don't eat them with Blaise. If Père found out that Blaise was around when you made any of your body parts tingle, I don't know what he would do."

Teddy stared at him in confusion for a moment, while Blaise snickered. "What? Why would Père care if my nose tingled around Blaise? Why would Père care if who was around when my nose tingled?"

Draco laughed loudly and moved down the aisle to look at Chocolate Cauldrons.

Teddy followed him. "What are you laughing at?"

"Go and ask Blaise or better yet Père." Draco smirked. "If you don't know about how that stuff works, I'm certainly not going to be the one to explain it to you."

Teddy stared at him again before his face lit up in comprehension. Then he glared. "You prick!"

Draco continued laughing as Teddy stalked over to Blaise who was looking at the Pepper Imps.

Half an hour later Draco, Blaise and Teddy entered the Three Broomsticks, looking around for Marcus and Daphne.

"Draco!"

Draco turned around and was surprised to see his Uncle Rodolphus sitting at a table in the corner. He nudged Teddy and pointed at his Uncle.

"I'll be back in minute."

"Uncle Rodol!" Once he reached his Uncle's table he Draco in one of the chairs and nodded. "I wasn't expecting you here."

His Uncle Rodolphus frowned. "I was supposed to be meeting your Father. He's one of the supervising Professors today. But he's not here."

Draco looked towards the door. "How long ago was he supposed to be here?"

"Half an hour." Uncle Rodol replied.

"Oh Merlin!" Draco looked towards the door again. "That's not good. You need to tell Père."

His Uncle Rodol looked at him in confusion. "Why?"

Draco stood up, barely restraining himself from running a hand through his hair in worry. "Because Father is never late and you know it. Also, because your brother and ex-wife are still out there and for all we know wanting to hurt him more. And because Father isn't well. He's exhausted. Pere's teaching almost all of his classes at the moment. He's been using a time turner."

Uncle Rodol stood as well and began walking quickly towards the door. "I'll go tell your Père now, you stay here. Where is he?"

"Duke Slytherin's Manor." Draco replied and then watched as his Uncle walked onto the street and Apparated away."

"What was he here for?"

Draco turned and saw the both Teddy and Blaise were standing beside him, looking curious. "Uncle Rodolphus was supposed to meet Father here thirty minutes ago, except Father didn't show."

Teddy went pale. "What's he doing now?"

"Uncle Rodol is going to tell Père." Draco was feeling rather pale himself. "He said to stay here. We should get a table."

"Do you think he's alright?" Teddy asked.

"I don't know." Draco looked towards the door, desperately hoping that his Father would just walk through it. "He's been so tired recently."

"Do you know why he was going to meet Lord Lestrange today?" Blaise asked. "He's only managed to teach three classes this week."

"I don't know." Draco looked towards the door again. "He really misses him when they're apart. Ever since Uncle Rodol got out of Azkaban he made sure that he saw him every week."

Teddy was looking towards the door every few seconds as well. "Maybe he just likes to reassure himself that he isn't in Azkaban anymore. I can't imagine if you were put there, Dray. It would be horrible not to see you for years."

"What?" Blaise tilted his head to the side with a smirk that was obviously forced. "You wouldn't miss me?"

"Of course I would miss you!" Teddy reassured him. "But it's different. We're lovers, Lord Lestrange and Father are just friends – like Draco and me."

Draco forced his eyes away from the door and tried to smirk at Teddy. "Lovers, huh? You probably shouldn't tell Père that. He'll give you another lecture about the dangers of pregnancy outside of a bond."

"No." Teddy shook his head. "I didn't mean...we're not...Prick!"

Blaise snickered again. "What about you, Dray? Any little Malfoy-Weasley's in your future?"

"Merlin, no!" Draco heard the door open and looked over hopefully. He frowned slightly when Marcus and Daphne came through the door instead of his Father, but waved them over to their table. "Charlie says we can at least wait until I'm out of school."

"What about your Father?" Blaise questioned. "Are he and Duke Peverell going to have kids?"

"Of course." Teddy said. "Père wants at least three more heirs."

"That makes sense." Blaise nodded. "Peverell, Gryffindor, Black."

Draco snickered as a thought came to him. "I wonder whether Duke Slytherin and Madame Bones will have kids."

"I don't think they can." Daphne said as she sat down beside Draco. "Madame Bones isn't young anymore. And she already has an heir in Susan Bones."

"Duke Slytherin doesn't have an heir though." Draco pointed out with a smirk.

35-35-35

Lucius was confused when he woke up sitting on a cold, hard floor. He wasn't sure where he was, or how he had got there. He looked around the room and was relieved to see that he was the room's only occupant. It gave it time to figure out what was happening, and how to escape. The room was dark and seemed to be made out of wood. His wrists were chained to the wall above his head with – what Lucius presumed were – magical manacles, and his wand was gone.

What purpose would any one have for kidnapping him? A few months ago he might have suspected Dumbledore, but the old man was still being held that Ministry. The only other suspects he could think of were Rabastan and Bellatrix, but even then it didn't make a whole lot of sense. They were on the run, both the Ministry and the Dark Lord's forces were searching for them. Surely their best option would have been to leave England and lay low in some place like Belgium?

Lucius pulled himself to his feet and examined the manacles around his wrists. He recognised the logo on them from the sign of one of the more suspect stores in Knockturn Alley and cursed. Damsel's Distress was known for selling magical manacles that could only be released by the wizard who tightened them.

Damn it! If this was Rabastan and Bellatrix, what did they want? And where were they? For that matter, where was he?


	36. Chapter 36

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

36-36-36

Lucius sat down – it took a lot less energy to sit than to stand – and looked around the room again. There were no windows, in fact the only exit point seemed to be the door to his left. He pulled at the manacles in growing desperation. After a moment he froze and then scrambled to his feet so he could see his wrist. He still had his bracelet, the one that Harry had given him on the day they had bonded. More importantly though, the one that was a portkey that would take him to Malfoy Manor. Originally the portkey had been to somewhere else, but after they had moved back into Malfoy Manor, Harry had changed the destination.

Lucius looked towards the door in shock as he heard the murmur of voices for the first time since he had regained conciousness. Did he use the portkey now? Or did he wait to figure out what he could about his kidnappers? The submissive Veela in him was screaming for him to go home and find his dominant, but Lucius was just as much a Slytherin as he was a Veela. He looked down at the bracelet again, before sitting down again and looking towards the door expectantly.

He wasn't disappointed, and less than a minute later the door opened and a wizard entered the room.

"Rabastan?" Lucius asked in surprise. Sure Rabastan had been on his list of suspects, but he honestly hadn't thought that the younger wizard would be this stupid.

Rabastan Lestrange smirked. "Hello, Lucius. How lovely it is to see you. I've missed you these last few months."

"Is that so." Lucius asked. "Is that why you have brought me here?"

Rabastan shrugged. "Partly. You're my angel, Lucius!"

"Pardon?"

Rabastan didn't answer for a moment as he transfigured something from his pocket into a chair and sat down, rickety though the chair appeared – apparently transfiguration wasn't Rabastan's strong point.

"You were always there, always so beautiful!" Rabastan stared at Lucius with adoring eyes. "All the way through Hogwarts I worshipped you from a far, and then you married that bitch. I was going to save you, Lucius! I had it all planned out. I was going to get Rodolphus and Narcissa out of the way and when I was Lord Lestrange I was going to marry you myself."

Lucius stared at the wizard in front of him, his stomach churning in horror. He had known that Rabastan had been infatuated with him at Hogwarts, but had honestly thought that the boy had grown out of it.

"But then it all went wrong." Rabastan's mouth twisted into a snarl. "The Potter brat defeated our Lord, and I got shipped off to Azkaban. The dementors were horrible, Lucius! I thought I was going to be trapped there forever, and then you came to rescue me! I can still see you there at the door of my cell, your blond hair was like a shining light. At first I though that you were an angel sent to take me to heaven, but then I realised that the reality was so much better. You were my angel, come to rescue me from hell.

"And I started to make a new plan." Rabastan continued, his eyes bright and excited. "I was going to arrange for Rodolphus to be captured – they'd give him the kiss for sure, and Bella was going to kill Narcissa, and everything would be perfect! But then everything was ruined again. You started fucking the Potter brat of all people. I was confused, I didn't understand how you could betray me like that! But then I realised that Potter must have cursed you, forced you to sleep with him! So I've rescued you! And when Bella gets back we're going to take away the curse, and then we can be together forever!"

There were no words, Lucius decided. What did one say to confessions like that?

"Won't that be amazing, Lucy?" Rabastan asked, his face twisting into a scowl. "Aren't you thankful?"

Lucius watched cautiously as the other man pulled out his wand and pointed it in his direction. "I'm just shocked, Rabastan." He replied in a calming tone. "You attacked me."

"What?" Rabastan looked confused for a moment, before his expression cleared. "Oh, you mean at Riddle Manor. I had to, Lucy! Bella and I had to escape, otherwise the plan wouldn't have worked! I didn't kill you though! And I knew that Severus would be able to fix you. You understand, don't you?"

Lucius nodded slowly. "Of course I do, Rabastan. So Bellatrix is here as well?" He looked towards the open door for a moment. "Where is here, anyway?"

Rabastan grinned happily at him. "Oh, it's this really wonderful little cabin in..."

Lucius stared at the now dead wizard in front of him, before whipping his head around towards the door where the green coloured spell had originated.

Bellatrix stepped into the room twirling her wand through her fingers. "Oopsy."

36-36-36

Rodolphus knocked one the door of the Dark Lord's – Duke Slytherin's, he reminded himself – office. When there was no immediate answer he knocked again, this time louder.

"His Grace is in the Duelling Chamber."

Rodolphus spun around to stare at Yaxley, the Death Eater who had spoken, before running in the direction of the Duelling Chamber. Once he got there he threw the door open and ran in.

"Rodolphus?" Harry and Duke Slytherin stopped duelling instantly, Harry dodging the final spell even as he moved towards Rodolphus. "I thought you were meeting Lucius this afternoon."

Rodolphus bowed quickly. "I was, your grace. But Lucius didn't arrive. I waited for thirty minutes, but when he still hadn't arrived Draco told me I should tell you."

Harry straightened up minutely and turned towards Duke Slytherin. "I want every single one of your followers here in five minutes. I'll call for my lot."

Rodolphus was shocked to see that Duke Slytherin simply nodded in quiet agreement before Apparating away. Sure he had known that the Dark Lord and Harry got along well, but he had never thought he would see the day when the Dark Lord allowed anyone to tell him what to do.

Harry walked towards Rodolphus, and then right past him and into the hallway. "Tell me what happened."

Rodolphus walked quickly to catch up with the shorter man before replying. "Lucius and I arranged to meet at Three Broomsticks at eleven. I got there a few minutes early and found a table, but Lucius didn't arrive. At first I just thought he was running late..."

"Lucius is never late." Harry snapped.

"No, your grace." Rodolphus replied, before blinking in surprise at his formal address. "At eleven thirty Draco arrived, along with Teddy and Blaise, and so I asked him if he had seen Lucius. Draco denied having seen him, and then told me that I should come tell you what had happened."

Harry stopped walking and turned to Rodolphus. "Thank you, for telling me. I have a few things I have to do, I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall in a few minutes."

Rodolphus nodded and then blinked in surprise for the second time in as many minutes. Since when had Harry had been added to Duke Slytherin's wards? Or was he just so powerful that he could break through anti- Apparating wards?

Rodolphus quickly walked towards the Entrance Hall and joined the three other Death Eater's who were already waiting there – Duke Slytherin worked quickly.

He had barely been there a minute when Severus Apparated in and quickly made his way to Rodolphus' side.

"Any idea what we're here for?"

"Lucius is missing." Rodolphus replied after casting up a privacy spell. "I was supposed to meet him this morning, but he didn't come."

"Fuck!" Severus looked around the room quickly. "Where's Harry?"

"I have no idea. He was with me a few minutes ago, but he said he had a few things to do and Apparated out. You got here quick. Normally you're one of the last to arrive."

Severus smirked. "Perk of being Headmaster, I can Apparate from anywhere in the castle. I also spend most of my time in my office, alone."

Rodolphus let out a harsh laugh. "You must be loving that. No more mixed classes with Gryffindors and Slytherins."

"It is certainly more tolerable than my previous occupation ever was." Severus smirked widened.

Rodolphus smirked in reply and then looked around the room again. It seemed that at least ten new witches and wizards had Apparated into the Hall during their conversation. He waved Arthur and Percy Weasley over, both who were looking rather lost among all the Death Eaters.

"Do you know why we are here?" Arthur asked as soon as he was standing beside them.

"Lucius is missing." Rodolphus replied. "I imagine that we are to be the search parties."

"Dad, Percy." Charlie Weasley joined their group with a small grin, before sobering up. "Does anyone know why we're here?"

"Lucius is missing." Arthur replied.

"How were you summoned?" Rodolphus asked curiously. "You don't have Dark Marks, do you?"

"Not as such." Arthur replied as he pulled something out of his pocket and held it up. "Harry gave us this."

"May I?" Severus asked, holding his hand out for the object.

"Sure." Arthur dropped what seemed to be a small metal disk into Severus' hand. "It works in a similar way to your marks."

Severus held the disk up to his face and then passed it to Rodolphus who did the same. He had been wrong. The disk wasn't metal, it was made of an amethyst gem, and had the Peverell crest magnified inside it.

"Wow!" Rodolphus looked up from the gem and saw that Severus looked impressed as well. "This is amazing. It's the same as his ring. Did he make it?"

"I don't think so." Arthur replied. "I know he did the spell work, but I don't think he made the gem."

"And you all have one?" Rodolphus asked. He looked back at the gem in amazement, he had never seen anything quite like it.

"Yup." Charlie grinned. "Me, Draco, Dad, Bill, Perce, the twins, Neville, Blaise, Teddy. Pretty much anyone who is firmly on his side, that doesn't have a Dark Mark. We got them sometime last week, just in time too."

Rodolphus handed the gem back to Arthur. "And it works the same as our Mark?"

"Yes." Arthur re pocketed the gem. "It lets us know when Harry needs us, and then guides our Apparation to wherever Harry needs us. And if we ever need him, we can call him through it."

"Charlie!"

"Dad!"

Rodolphus turned towards the voice and realised that Draco, Blaise, Teddy, Neville, Fred, and George were all moving quickly towards them. They all looked a little shaken up.

Before anyone could say anything else Duke Slytherin and Harry appeared in one of the doorways an everyone in the hall stilled.

Harry spoke first. "My Consort, Lucius Malfoy has been kidnapped by Rabastan and Bellatrix Lestrange. We have managed to narrow down their location to Mancript Forest. You will all be sorted into search parties. Right now though, I need to speak to my sons, Charlie and Blaise. Also Arthur, Rodolphus, and Severus."

Rodolphus, along with the other wizards who had been asked for, made his way across the hall towards the two Dukes. It had been Bellatrix and Rabastan? Merlin that was awful! He had always known that his wife was slightly crazy, but Rabastan had always seemed rather balanced.

They all followed Harry into the hallway and then watched as he cast a privacy charm around them.

"Charlie," Harry started urgently. "Lucius has a portkey that will take him to Malfoy Manor. I need you, Draco, Teddy and Blaise to wait there in case he uses it."

"Rabastan and Bellatrix will most likely have put up anti-portkey wards." Rodolphus felt the need to point out.

"I know." Harry nodded. "But I made the portkey, and it is capable of breaking through a lot of wards. It couldn't break through any of my or Tom's wards, but I doubt that either Bellatrix or Rabastan are capable of casting strong enough wards to stop it."

"How do you know that it's them?" Charlie asked. "Did someone see them?"

Harry shook his head. "No, but I tested the path between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade for their magical signatures and found them beside Lucius'. I could be wrong, but for now it's the best working theory we have. But, because I can't be completely sure, I need Rodolphus, Severus and Arthur to look at all the other suspects."

"Who?"

"Dumbledore, Molly Prewett, even Mad-Eye Moody. Any one who you think might have a grudge against me or Lucius."

Rodolphus nodded and then followed Harry back to the Entrance Hall along with the others. They would find Lucius, if it was the last thing they did.

36-36-36

Lucius glanced down at the dead body on the ground, the transfigured chair had disappeared when Rabastan had died – he obviously was absolutely awful at transfiguration – and then back up at Bellatrix who was smirking maniacally at him.

"Why kill Rabastan?"

"He was going to give away our little secret!" Bellatrix giggled, nudging at the body with her foot. "And he wouldn't have liked what happens to sweet ickle Lucy next. He would have tried to ruin my fun, can't have that."

"And what is going to happen next?"

"Punishment." Bellatrix cackled, before stopping to glare at him. "You left my beautiful sister for that brat! Broke poor Cissy's heart! How dare you! Took away all her money and left her on the streets, poor little Cissy."

Lucius rolled his eyes. Poor Cissy? Narcissa had never been a victim in her life. She was always the bully in every scenario. He looked up at the bracelet and then back at Bellatrix. If she was touching him when he activated it, then she would be transported with him. And Lucius knew for sure that the wards around Malfoy Manor would imprison Bellatrix on arrival.

But how to get Bellatrix close enough?

36-36-36

Draco cuddled against Charlie's side, his face nestled into his mate's neck. The two of them, along with Teddy and Blaise, were sitting on the couches in the Entrance Hall of Malfoy Manor just in case Father managed to portkey home.

"He'll be alright, little dragon." Charlie murmured.

"How do you know?" Draco asked. "Aunty Bella is crazy, and she and Rabastan are the ones who tortured Neville's parents. Oh Merlin, what if they do that to Father?"

"Harry is looking for them." Charlie pointed out. "And Harry is fucking scary and determined when he's mad."

"Père's been searching for them for months though!" Draco pointed out. "Why do you think that he'll find them now? What if he doesn't find them for another two months?"

Charlie chuckled softly. "Harry hasn't been searching for them, he's had other people searching for them. On his list of priorities, they've been pretty fucking low. Now though, everything Harry has at his disposal is focussed on find them. Besides which, your Father is an incredibly smart man. He's not just going to lay there and play the victim."

Draco smirked slightly. Charlie was absolutely right, there was no way his Father would play the victim.

"But why hasn't Père been focussing on catching them? Maybe if he had, they wouldn't have taken Father."

Charlie sighed. "You're right. And I'm sure that Harry will be cursing himself for that. But he had so much other stuff that he had to do, and we all thought that they were rather low risk. It's been two months, and they haven't killed a single person that we know of."

"But he'll get them now right?" Teddy asked from a few metres away.

"Of course." Charlie grinned. "I've never seen him fail to do anything he set his mind to."

36-36-36

Arthur sighed as he stared at his previous place of residence, both Severus and Rodolphus standing beside him. If there was one person that he really didn't want to have to see again it was Molly, but Harry had mentioned her by name and so here they were.

"You ready?" Rodolphus asked with a nudge.

"I don't think I ever will be." Arthur replied before moving towards the house. Molly had stolen so much from him, he didn't think he would ever get over it.

Severus was the one to knock at the door of the Burrow, and then they all stood about a metre from the door with scowls on their faces.

A minute late the door was opened by Molly who took one look at them before attempting to slam the door, Severus was faster though and spelled the door open.

"Good afternoon, Molly." Arthur started. "May we come in?"

"You damn well may not!" Molly snarled. "Who the hell do you think you are coming here after everything you've done?"

Arthur allowed himself to smirk slightly. "Well, the owner of this house for one."

Molly visibly drew herself up. "What?!"

"You came into our marriage with nothing besides the blackmail material, and you left the marriage with same." Arthur explained. "However, because two of my children chose to still live with you, I allowed you to stay here."

"But, but, what about my settlement?" Molly asked. "I was married to you for over twenty years! I should at least get something."

Arthur laughed bitterly. "You were lucky not to get an Azkaban sentence. I chose not to press charges, Molly, don't make me regret that."

"Enough of this idiocy." Severus scowled. "We're here for a purpose. Let us in woman!"

For a moment it looked as though Molly was going to try and block their path, but then she stepped aside and let them pass. The three men entered the kitchen and looked around for a moment before looking back at Molly who was glaring at them defiantly.

"Well? Now that you have barged into my home, what do you want?"

Severus pulled out his wand and cast a spell at Molly that Arthur didn't recognise.

"What did you do to me?" Molly shrieked. "How dare you come into my home and curse me!"

"Oh, shut up, woman!" Severus groused. "It's only a simple truth spell. Now sit down, you harpy."

"What did you just call me?" Molly shrieked.

"Where is Lucius Malfoy?" Severus asked.

Molly sneered. "How the hell should I know where that bastard is?"

"Did you have any hand in his kidnapping?" Severus asked.

"No." Molly said quickly. "But I bloody well wish I had."

"Do you have any plan to in any way hurt or harm Harry Potter, Lucius Malfoy, or any of their family?" Arthur asked.

"No." Molly scowled. "But I hope someone else does."

Arthur rolled his eyes. Merlin! Molly seemed even more insufferable than she ever had during their marriage.

"Last question." Severus' drawled dangerously. "Why do you have all the potion ingredients for an illegal abortion potion on your table?"

Arthur's head whipped up to glance between his ex-wife, the table and Severus. "What?!"

"No!" Molly shrieked." You can't make me answer that!"

Severus chuckled darkly. "Actually I think you'll find that the spell can."

Molly tried to bring her hands up to cover her mouth as it began to open, but Arthur made sure to spell her hands down.

"Because I'm making the abortion potion."

"And why are you making the abortion potion?" Severus asked.

"Because Ginny's pregnant again, poor dear." Molly said after a few seconds.

"How far along is she?" Arthur asked.

"Two months, we think." Molly scowled as the words were forced out of her mouth.

"And the Father?"

"Some nice boy she met over the summer." Molly replied. "Edmund Prince or something."

"Fucking hell." Severus scowled, before casting another spell. "There, I've taken the spell off you." He moved over to the table and pocketed one of the many small jars sitting on it, before stalking out of the house.

Arthur and Rodolphus both followed his quickly, ignoring Molly who was shrieking and cursing them.

"What did you take?" Arthur asked.

"Unicorn blood, unwillingly taken." Severus replied. "It's very hard to come across, mostly because of how illegal it is, and she can't make the potion without it. It'll give us a few days to figure out what to do."

"Us?" Arthur asked in surprise, Severus wasn't exactly known for helping other people out.

"Do you know who Edmund Prince is?" Severus asked with a scowl. When Arthur shook his head, Severus continued. "Edmund Prince is my irresponsible, reckless, manwhore of a nephew."

"Oh." Arthur stared at Severus for a moment. "Oh dear."

36-36-36

Lucius scowled at his ex-sister in law who had been slowly casting cutting spells at his arms. He wasn't entirely sure how much more of this he could take. If Bellatrix didn't touch him soon he would give up on his plan and just portkey to safety without her.

"Are you sorry yet, Lucy goosy?" Bellatrix asked before casting another cutting curse at his leg and cackling madly when blood began to seep into his trousers. "Look at all that pretty pretty blood. I could paint a picture for my sweet Cissy."

Lucius sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well why don't you, Bellatrix? Or are you just going to keep standing across the other side of the room all day? Coward!"

"I'm no coward!" Bellatrix shrieked before casting another curse, this time it was burning one.

"No?" Lucius taunted. "Then why are you across the other side of the room? Afraid that I'll hurt you if you get too close?"

Bellatrix sneered at him before freezing and looking towards the door through which the murmur of voices were heard.

"No! They shan't have you!" Bellatrix shrieked again, diving forward and grabbing Lucius' arm tightly. "I caught you! All mine! My little Lucy!"

Lucius looked towards the doorway and then back at Bellatrix. One on hand, if Harry had come to rescue him, he didn't want to leave. On the other hand, if it wasn't Harry, it would be better to leave before they arrived. Besides, subduing Bellatrix using the words was probably the safest way.

"I love the Weasleys." Lucius smirked triumphantly as he and Bellatrix were both pulled away by the portkey.

36-36-36

Harry Apparated into a small cabin and grinned as he felt both Lucius' and Bellatrix's magical signatures. He looked around the room.

"You were right. He's here." Harry's smile dropped quickly as his mate's magical signature suddenly disappeared, along with Bellatrix's. "Fuck! They're gone! Bellatrix must have heard us."

Harry punched the wall beside him. Fuck! Now they had to start from scratch, and Lucius could be anywhere. He turned towards the room and took a step towards the trap door that Bill was trying to undo the wards on. Reaching out with his magic, Harry felt for the wards and then destroyed them quickly.

"What?" Bill stared down at the trapdoor in shock. "What did you do?"

"It doesn't matter." Harry growled. "We need to see if they left anything behind."

Bill opened the trapdoor and then climbed down. Harry and Neville both followed him, leaving the rest of their team in the cabin.

The room they were in was completely empty, there wasn't even any furniture, but there was an open door off it.

Harry moved into the open doorway, and then moved into the room, taking in the manacles on the wall and Rabastan's body on the floor.

"One down, one to go."

"I guess that answers the question over whether they were definitely to blame." Neville said.

Harry sneered at the body before heading back towards the trapdoor. "Someone grab him. Madame Bones will want proof."

Harry was halfway up the ladder to the trapdoor when he felt Charlie's disk calling to him. Charlie who was at Malfoy Manor just in case Lucius portkeyed home. Lucius who had seemingly just portkeyed somewhere. He Apparated to Charlie's location immediately.

The first thing he saw was the walls of the Malfoy Manor Entrance Hall, the second thing he saw was Charlie, the third thing he saw was Lucius!


	37. Chapter 37

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

37-37-37

"What happened?" Harry demanded of Charlie quickly as he ran across the hall towards his mate. Lucius' robes were sliced up, and he was covered in blood. Although otherwise he seemed relatively unharmed. Harry fell to his knees beside the couch that Lucius was lying on and clasped his mate's hand.

"What happened, little one?"

"It was Bellatrix." Lucius replied. "Her and Rabastan, but he's dead now."

Harry nodded. "I know. We found the room where they were keeping you just after you left."

Lucius smiled slightly. "Oh, so it was you then? I heard voices, but didn't want to risk it not being you."

Harry leant forward and gently kissed him. "That's fine. Why did you wait so long to use the portkey though? There's so much blood."

"It's all superficial." Lucius sighed. "Just a few cutting curses and burning hexes."

Harry raised his eyebrows sceptically. "I think we'll let Severus be the judge of that!" He pulled out his version of the magic discs and called everyone to the manor, before turning back to Lucius.

"Why did you wait?"

"I wanted to get as much information as I could." Lucius smirked tiredly. "And then later, once Rabastan was dead, I wanted to bring Bellatrix with me." His smirk turned triumphant. "I imagine that the wards placed her in the dungeons."

"You have dungeons?" Charlie asked from a few feet away.

Harry turned and saw the both his sons were staring at Lucius with horrified expressions, each of their partners hugging them in comfort. He beckoned them forward.

"Draco, Teddy, come say hi. He's alright."

Both the boys scrambled towards the couch their Father was lying on, barely stopping short of jumping on him.

"We were so worried!" Draco said, his eyes filling with tears.

"You're ok?" Teddy asked looking Lucius' blood covered clothes over with a doubtful expression. "You're definitely alright?"

Lucius reached out his free hand towards them and smiled when both boys grabbed hold of it. "I'm definitely alright. Severus will have me fixed in a few hours."

"We'll see about that." Severus said, striding towards them having just Apparated into the Hall. "I'm not a Healer you know, nor a Medi-wizard."

"It's just a few cuts and burns, Sev." Lucius explained. "Nothing your potions can't fix."

Harry stood up and then pulled Draco and Teddy away from Lucius. "Let's give Severus some room to work."

Both boys hugged Harry quickly before moving back to their significant others. Harry turned towards Rodolphus and Arthur who had Apparated in with Severus and were now standing in the middle of the Hall.

"He portkeyed in with Bellatrix attached." Harry explained. "Lucius thinks that she's in the dungeons. Could you go and check and make sure? I can feel her magic somewhere in the Manor, but I would just feel better if I knew she was contained."

"Sure." Arthur nodded. "Where are the dungeons?"

"Rodolphus knows the way." Harry replied, before turning to Rodolphus. "Your brother is dead. We think Bellatrix probably killed him."

Rodolphus closed his eyes for a moment. "Thank you for letting me know."

Harry nodded briskly and then turned back to Lucius and Severus. "What do you think?"

Severus lowered his wand. "Lucius was right. There are just some cuts and burns, nothing I can't handle. The cut on his leg is deeper than the others, but I'm confident that I can safely patch it up."

Harry moved to the couch and began to stroke Lucius' hair. "Good. Thank you."

"It would be easier to treat him in his bed." Severus said pointedly.

"It's safe to move him?"

"I survived a portkey." Lucius pointed out. "I doubt that you gently carrying me to our room will be any worse than that."

"He'll be fine." Severus agreed. "Be careful though. I imagine he's in a lot of pain."

"Not a lot." Lucius argued. "Just a little."

Harry caressed Lucius' cheek before turning towards Severus. "Can you give him a pain reliever first?"

"I could, but I'd rather wait." Severus replied. "I'm not entirely sure what potions I'm going to need to use on the burns yet, and I don't want to risk giving him a pain potion that would react with any of the options."

"Alright." Harry cast a featherweight charm on his mate, before gently picking him up. "You alright, Lucius?"

Lucius nodded tiredly. "I'm fine."

"Good." Harry bent down to kiss Lucius, before turning towards Draco and Teddy. "You guys can come as well. Though you may have to stay in our sitting room while Severus is healing him."

"Thanks, Père." Draco stepped out of Charlie's embrace, but kept hold of his mate's hand. "Can Charlie and Blaise come too?"

"Of course." Harry said, beginning to make his way across the Hall. "They're part of our family as well."

37-37-37

A few hours later, Harry, along with Severus and Rodolphus, entered the Malfoy Manor dungeons and stopped outside of Bellatrix's cell. Despite the name, the Malfoy Dungeons weren't particularly dungeon like. There were no cell bars, instead wards kept the prisoners inside their 'cells'. The wards only allowed Harry or Lucius to enter the cells without being trapped inside, only they could release prisoners as well.

"Ickle little Potter." Bellatrix cooed with a insane smirk. "All big and dark now, aren't you? Not like when poor cousin Sirius died. Think you can make me scream this time?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "It was all an act, Bellatrix. You'll be screaming this time, I promise you."

"There was a last time?" Rodolphus questioned.

"At the Department of Mysteries, just after Sirius was pushed through the Veil."

"And you kept up your act?" Rodolphus asked. "Even after seeing your Godfather killed?"

"My Godfather who I had only really spent a few weeks with." Harry pointed out. "Besides, I had worked too hard to let everything crumble then."

"What difference would it have made though?" Severus asked. "You contacted the Dark Lord the next day."

"There were too many variables." Harry shrugged. "What if her screams drew the attention of some of the Order. What if someone checked my wand and it showed extended use of the Cruciatus Curse?"

"But if they checked your wand and saw that you had attempted it, wouldn't it have gotten you in just as much trouble?"

Harry laughed slightly. "Not at all. Dumbledore would have been so proud that I was incapable of casting it, he would have covered it up. He would have seen it as confirmation that I was truly Light."

"But you've used the curse before?" Rodolphus asked.

"Once or twice, only on dummies conjured by the Room of Requirement." Harry shrugged again. "I'm not a huge fan to be honest. I prefer to use more basic spells. And I probably shouldn't use the Cruciatus today anyway. I'll have to turn her into Madame Bones, and it would be best if there was no evidence of any wrongdoing on my behalf."

"Can she tell?" Rodolphus asked curiously.

"Yes." Severus answered for Harry. "The spell leaves nerve damage even after the victim is dead. Besides, Harry's not going to kill her, are you?"

"So if you can't torture her, and you're not going to kill her, what are you going to do?"

Harry laughed darkly. "Oh, I never said that I couldn't torture her, only that I couldn't torture her with the Cruciatus. Tom spoke to Madame Bones, and she had agreed to turn a blind eye as long as no illegal spells are used."

"Why not kill her?" Rodolphus asked. "I would if I was you."

"Because I honestly don't think there is a worse death to be had than being cursed by Dementors." Harry said twirling his wand with smirk. "So I'll have my fun and get my pound of flesh, and then turn her into the Ministry."

Harry turned towards Bellatrix, who had long since gotten bored of their conversation and was humming quietly to herself, and spelled her to the wall – spread eagle.

"Oooo." Bellatrix cackled. "Is ickle Potter trying to prove he's a real wizard after all?"

"Bellatrix Lestrange." Harry intoned. "I, Harry James Peverell, Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Peverell, Duke of the Archaic and Royal House of Gryffindor, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Black, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter, do cast you out of the House of Black for your actions against my Consort. May your name be forever stricken from our family tree, and may your name be cursed by each of my five Houses for ever more. So mote it be."

"Merlin." Rodolphus smirked. "Your titles are a bit of a mouthful, aren't they."

"I'm just glad that I was allowed to change my name to simply Harry James Peverell. It's alright to have five titles after my name, but five surnames was a bit much."Harry replied, after a moment his expression became hard."If I was you, Rodolphus, I would go to the Ministry to have your marriage bond dissolved this afternoon. I have no idea why you haven't done it yet, but you should definitely do it before I turn her over to Madame Bones. The last thing the House of Lestrange needs is for it's Lady to be kissed by Dementors."

"Of course." Rodolphus nodded.

"What does it mean for her name to be cursed?" Teddy asked from the doorway of the dungeon.

Harry turned around and frowned at Draco, Teddy and Blaise. "Where's Charlie? I asked him to keep you three distracted. You shouldn't be down here."

Draco smirked slightly. "We gave him the slip. We want to watch, Père. She hurt Father."

Harry sighed. "Fine. But if it gets to much for you, leave straight away."

They all nodded.

"And Teddy. It means that no future Peverell, Gryffindor, Black, Malfoy or Potter can ever be named Bellatrix."

"What if my great great great grandson wants to marry a witch named Bellatrix though?" Teddy asked.

"That's fine." Draco answered. "It only restricts direct descendants of the line."

Harry smiled at his sons for a moment before turning back to Bellatrix. "Now, Bella darling. What ever shall I do first?"

37-37-37

"How are you feeling, love?"

"I'm fine." Lucius sighed happily as Harry began to stroke his hair. "Severus said I'll be as good as new tomorrow. But we're not allowed to have sex until then." He pouted. "I asked specifically."

Harry snickered. "Damn that Severus. Spoiling all our fun."

"That's what I said." Lucius said. "Did you have a good time? How is Bellatrix?"

"She's alive." Harry smirked. "A little worse for wear though. I'm not turning her over to the Ministry until tomorrow morning, so you're welcome to have a go at her once Severus has given you the all clear."

Lucius shook his head tiredly. "No thank you. I just want to rest for the next month. Well rest and have sex, that is."

Harry laughed and bend down to kiss him. "That's fine. I can keep taking your classes."

Lucius frowned worriedly. "Are you sure? Dumbledore's trial is in a few weeks. Don't you have a lot to do for that?"

"Nope." Harry grinned and lay down beside Lucius. "All my part is done until the actual trial. It's all in Madame Bones' and Anna Wood's hands now."

"Ok." Lucius rolled over, wincing slightly as he put to much weight on some of his wounds, and put his hand on Harry's shoulder. "Maybe you could ask Charlie to help out with some of your Muggle Defence classes?"

Harry sighed and started stroking Lucius' hair again. "I'll talk to him about it. Don't worry so much. I'm fine. The Time Turner has been helping a lot. And despite what you think, I have been using it to catch a few extra hours of sleep."

"Alright." Lucius smiled into Harry's shoulder. "Tell me what I've missed today."

"I think I would have won my duel against Tom if we hadn't been interrupted."

Lucius chuckled lightly. "And what does Tom think?"

"Tom thinks he would have won. But he's clearly deluded."

"Of course." Lucius laughed. "What else?"

"I sent Arthur, Severus, and Rodolphus to The Burrow, just in case it had been Molly who had taken you. Apparently she was in the middle of making an Abortion Potion, or at least she had all the ingredients on the table. She told them that Ginny was pregnant again."

Lucius tried to push himself up but decided it was too much effort. "Really? Again? Hasn't that girl heard about Contraceptive potions?"

"Severus thinks she might be one of the three percent of woman on whom Contraceptive Potions don't work. No one is that stupid. But it gets worse. Apparently the Father of the child is a Prince. Edmund Prince to be exact."

Lucius couldn't help but laugh. "Really? Severus had always said that it was only time before Edmund spawned an illegitimate child. What do Arthur and Severus plan to do about it?"

"Severus confiscated one of the essential ingredients. He estimates that it will take her at least a few days to replace it. Severus is going to have to talk to Noblewoman Prince. Arthur is planning on speaking to Ginny tomorrow. Obviously they will do everything in their power to prevent her from aborting the child."

"What of Molly? There's solid proof now isn't there? Will Arthur press charges?"

"I don't know." Harry shrugged. "I don't think he knows either be honest."

37-37-37

"I'm all healed?" Lucius asked Severus excitedly. "There are no restrictions left?"

Severus sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "Yes, Lucius. You're all healed. You may now have sex. I don't know what you're all worked up about. It's not like you've been apart for a week or anything. I haven't spent any time with Bill for two weeks."

Lucius smirked smugly. "Poor you. Harry and I had sex three days ago, and we're about to have more in about four minutes."

"Exactly!" Severus scowled. "It's only been three days. Why the hurry?"

Lucius lost his smirk. "I don't know. I just need it after yesterday. I need to know that I'm his. When are you due back at Hogwarts?"

"Not for a few more hours. Minerva can cover for me a little longer. There's not to much to do on Sundays."

"Go find Bill then." Lucius commanded. "Tell him that I said he should take you out for breakfast and then home for a good shag."

"Shag?" Severus asked with a grin. "What are you? Forty?"

Lucius sniffed. "Barely forty three, thank you very much. Just because you're of the young innocent age of thirty seven, doesn't give you any room to mock!"

Severus just laughed.

"Oh get out." Lucius scowled. "And send Harry in. He should be doing some work on at the table out there."

"Alright." Severus smirked and walked towards the door, turning back for a moment when he reached it. "I'm glad you're alright, Luc."

"Yeah, me too. Now go send Harry in so that I can get laid, and then go find Bill."

Severus just rolled his eyes.

Harry entered the room barely a minute later with a grin. "All clear?"

"Absolutely." Lucius returned his grin. "Well, the curse is still active. But other than that."

"There's only thirty four days until Severus can completely rid your body of the curse." Harry said as he pulled his t-shirt over his head.

"Thirty four?" Lucius asked in surprise. "I hadn't realised."

"Eight days until Dumbledore's trial." Harry said toeing off his shoes.

"How many days until Winter Solstice?"

"Fifty Seven." Harry replied with a grin as he undid the button of his jeans. "Are you going to get undressed too? Or are you going to keep asking me inane questions?"

Lucius grinned, but began to unbutton the shirt he was wearing. "Why on earth do you know how many days there are until Solstice?"

Harry, now completely undressed, made his way across to the bed and began to slide Lucius' pyjama trousers off his hips. "I was bored a few days ago while your First Years were taking a test."

"So you decided to count the days until Solstice?" Lucius asked undoing the final button on his shirt.

Harry leaned forward to kiss him. "Yeap."

37-37-37

Sex scene removed. You can read it on AO3

37-37-37

Lucius rolled his eyes. "I've been meaning to ask you something, but I keep forgetting."

Harry pulled the finger out. "Ask away. You have my full attention."

"No." Lucius moaned. "I don't want your full attention. Keep going."

"Alright." Harry laughed. "What was the question."

Lucius tried to gather his thoughts. "You want children right?"

"In addition to Draco and Teddy you mean?" Harry asked.

"Yeah." Lucius said. "I mean babies. A few months ago. When we got bonded. Severus and Rodolphus asked if I was taking a Contraceptive Potion. And I'm not, I never would without your permission. But I'm not pregnant yet, and so I wondered whether you are."

"Yeah." Harry answered. "I'm sorry, I should I talked to you about it."

"No." Lucius shook his head. "It's ok. I just wanted to know. Are you going to stay on them forever?"

"No. Not at all. At first it was just because everything was so new. And now with your curse. I was going to talk to you about coming off them sometime after Halloween."

"When I'm at full health again?" Lucius asked.

"Yeah. You're just so tired at the moment." Harry said. "I definitely want more children. At least another three. But however many you're happy with. And I want them soon. I just don't want to put more pressure on your body. How does that sound?"

"Wonderful." Lucius beamed at him. "I'll give you as many children as you want, Domine."

"I love you." Harry said, leaning down for another kiss.

"I love you too." Lucius said.

After a minute of gentle kissing Lucius wiggled as much as the binds would allow him.

Harry chuckled. "You want me to continue where I left off?"

"Please!"

37-37-37

Sex scene removed. You can read it on AO3

37-37-37

"Hey." Harry said, pushing a few strands of hair out of Lucius' face. "How are you?"

"Amazing!" Lucius sighed. "And tired."

"You need to sleep?" Harry asked.

"Yeah." Lucius yawned. "Sorry. Can you stay? Just for a little while?"

"Of course." Harry pulled the sheet up and over both of them before wrapping himself around Lucius. "I wouldn't miss our after sex cuddles for the world."


	38. Chapter 38

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

38-38-38

"You can't make me!"

Arthur closed his eyes for a moment, reminding himself to be firm. "Actually, I can. You're an under-aged member of the House of Weasley. As the Lord of that House I can quite easily force you."

"I'll disown myself!" Ginny threatened, wiping at the tears on her cheeks. "Just like Ron did."

"You're under-aged, Ginny." Bill explained from behind Arthur. "You can't disown yourself."

"I don't want to force you though." Arthur said. "Well, not magically anyway."

"Then let me out." Ginny cried, looking towards the locked door that Charlie was standing in front of.

"No." Arthur said. "Not until you sit down and hear what I have to say."

"I've heard you! You want me to keep the baby. You're trying to ruin my life!"

"Dad doesn't expect you to raise the baby, Gin." Bill said gently, and for a moment Arthur wished he could just leave the entire conversation up to his oldest son. Bill was so much better at these kinds of situations than Arthur had ever been.

"Really?" Ginny scoffed. "Then what exactly does Dad expect?"

"To carry it to term and then give birth to it." Arthur replied. "It's my grandchild, Ginny. The next generation of the House of Weasley."

"No." Ginny shook her head. "I refuse. I don't want to get fat, or give birth. I don't want to lose an entire year of my life for some brat! I'm only sixteen."

"Yeah, well maybe you should've thought about that before getting knocked up." Charlie muttered and Arthur frowned at him. Those sort of comments weren't going to get them anywhere."

"What will you give me?" Ginny asked suddenly.

"What?"

"Well you're basically asking me to be a surrogate right?" Ginny asked. "Surrogates get things in payment. Houses, money, clothes and shit."

"Language." Arthur murmured distractedly.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Charlie burst out. "Ginny you fucked around and got pregnant. It's not as though you weren't expecting it, it's happened twice before for fuck's sake. Now you want something for not murdering your baby? How about we just promise to put in a good word with Madame Bones when you get arrested for the use of Abortion Potions?"

Arthur sighed as Ginny's eyes hardened. "You're not helping, Charlie."

"Yeah, well, the baby won't survive if I go to Azkaban." Ginny sneered at her brother. "You want this baby, you give me what I want."

"And what do you want?" Bill asked.

"Immunity for me and Mum." Ginny said straight away. "Your oath that I'll never have to raise the child. Money."

Arthur ran a hand over his eyes. Was this really what his family had come to? Bribing his youngest, his daughter not to kill her child? Where had he gone so wrong in his parenting of Ginny? Or Ron for that matter?

"You'd have to give us your oath that you'll never abort another child." Bill said. "If you ever get pregnant again you'll have to see through the pregnancy to the best of your ability."

"What?" Ginny asked. "Are you kidding me? Do think I wanna be like Mum one day? Seven children, five of whom abandoned her? Merlin, no."

"Don't get pregnant then." Charlie said.

"The Contraceptive Potions don't work on me." Ginny shrugged. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Abstain." Charlie growled at her. "Or if that's to much to ask, use muggle methods."

Ginny was quiet for a moment before shrugging. "Yeah, ok. But I want a house, and ten thousand galleons."

Arthur stared at his daughter for a moment before nodding, pointedly ignoring the tears in his eyes. "Alright. Ten thousand galleons. I can't give you immunity, but I can promise that none of us will tell the Ministry."

"And a house." Ginny demanded.

"I'll give your Mother the Burrow." Arthur sighed. "But that's it. And she had to give an oath never to in anyway damage this baby, or any babies you might have in the future."

Ginny wrinkled up her nose in distaste but nodded. "Fine. Do you wanna do it now or what?"

Arthur shook his head and stood up. "No. Bill and Charlie will handle it."

After leaving the room Arthur slid to the floor and leaned against the wall, allowing the tears in his eyes to escape. How had his relationship with his youngest gotten to this point?

38-38-38

"Albus Percival Wulfic Brian Dumbledore, Nobleman of the Aged and Aristocratic House of Dumbledore, you have been charged with twelve counts of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter, Use of an Unforgivable, two counts of Assessory to the Murder of a Wizard, twelve counts of Use of an Unforgivable Resulting in the Death of a Muggle, Obstruction of Justice, and one count of Theft. You have admitted to all of these charges under the influence of Veritaserum, how do you plead?"

"Not guilty." Dumbledore replied. "There were extenuating circumstances."

"What is your response to your Veritaserum confession, Nobleman?" Lord Kirke, the Chief Warlock, asked.

Anna Wood, Dumbledore's lawyer, stepped forward and motioned for Dumbledore to sit down. "The use of Veritaserum was unsanctioned and illegal, my lord. Because of this, anything that my client said while under the influence of the potion cannot be submitted to the Wizengamot."

Teddy frowned in confusion and turned to his Father. "I thought she was on our side?"

"She is, but she still has to appear as though she is doing her job." His Father replied, not looking away from Lord Kirke. "There is nothing that she could do that would save Dumbledore. Her role is to defend Dumbledore to the best of her ability and ensure that he doesn't get the chance to blurt out any secrets."

"Madame Bones?" Lord Kirke asked.

"I sanctioned the use of Veritaserum on Nobleman Dumbledore personally, Miss Wood." Madame Bones replied with a frown. "I was presented with irrefutable evidence that the Nobleman was guilty of at least two counts of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter. I arrested the Nobleman on that evidence and then questioned him under Veritaserum as was my right according to the 1635 Magical Law Enforcement Charter."

"Please produce the original evidence." Lord Kirke said.

Madame Bones nodded briskly, still frowning. "Duke Peverell originally provided the memories you are about to see. He obtained them from a Horace Slughorn."

The lights dimmed and Teddy stared at the memory that had appeared in the middle of the room. He had never seen anything like it before.

The image portrayed showed a younger Dumbledore sitting beside the Headmaster's desk at Hogwarts facing a nervous looking fat man.

"...can't, Dumbledore." The fat man was saying. "Murphy is positively terrible at Potions. You know that I attempt to see the best in all my students, and I'll admit that Murphy is brilliant at Defence, but he is an absolute hazard in my class."

"My boy," The memory version of Dumbledore sighed. "Surely young Benjamin isn't that bad. He's an outstanding student in all his other classes. You've invited him to attend your Slug Club, Horace. Benjamin is going to be an Auror, but for that he needs to have his Potions N.E.W.T."

The fat man, Horace, rubbed his hands together nervously. "He's blown up thirty potions in the last three years, Albus! And that's not counting the three years before that. Last week he accidentally dropped three shrivelled toad's feet into his Restoration potion and poor Alicia White was in the infirmary for three hours."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Horace." Dumbledore replied. ""Surely young Benjamin deserves a second chance."

Horace shook his head. "I can't accept him into my class, Dumbledore. He's a danger to all my other students and he doesn't even attempt to learn anything. Half of his potion explosions were caused by him trying to sneak food during class."

Dumbledore sighed sadly. "I really hate to do this, dear boy. But I really must insist that you let Mr. Murphy into your Sixth Year class."

"What?" Horace frowned.

"The Hogwarts' Charter allows the Headmaster to overrule Professor's in these matters." Dumbledore explained. "And I really must insist."

Teddy watched the real Dumbledore's face as the memory faded away and everyone began to converse quietly. The old wizard was frowned worriedly for a moment before pasting on a hurt expression.

Madame Bones cleared her throat and waited for silence. "Five weeks into Benjamin Murphy's sixth year he put Pixie Wings into his Ulcer Removing Potion. The resulting explosion killed both Mr. Murphy and his potions partner, a Miss Rebecca Slint."

The chamber was immediately filled with the sound of people muttering.

36-36-36

After the Wizengamot had paused for a lunch break, Lucius, along with Rodolphus and Severus, made his way to the small lunch parlour on the second floor of the Ministry Building. Harry had been called away to confer with Madame Bones and Lord Kirke, and Charlie had volunteered to keep an eye on Draco, Teddy and Blaise.

After all three wizards had placed their order they found a secluded table and Severus cast a muffling spell around them.

"Well." Rodolphus said. "Everything seems to be going well."

"Except that damn woman." Severus sneered. "If I didn't know better I'd think that she was actually trying to get him off."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "She has to appear as though she is doing her best, Sev. If Dumbledore has even the smallest suspicion that she didn't give him the best defence possible he could claim a mistrial and we would have to do this all over again."

"Did you speak to Noblewoman Prince?" Rodolphus asked Severus. "You were going to do that yesterday weren't you?"

Severus scowled. "Fucking Whitney."

Lucius laughed. "I'll take that as a yes then. What did she say?"

"She wasn't pleased. That's for sure. Edmund'll be getting an earful sometime soon, I imagine."

"And that baby?" Rodolphus asked.

"Whitney insists that it be cared for by a Prince, and Arthur is dead set on it being raised by a Weasley." Severus scowled again.

"You know," Rodolphus smirked. "There's an easy way to fix all that. You and Bill could take the kid. You're a Prince, he's a Weasley."

Severus' scowled deepened. "That's what he said."

"Who?" Lucius asked quickly.

"Bill." Severus snapped. "Who else?"

"Really?" Rodolphus grinned. "So what? You're going to move in with him? Or him with you, since you have to live at Hogwarts? Are you going to get bonded?"

Severus sneered at them both before sighing deeply and running a hand through his hair. "I don't know. We've barely been dating a month. It's idiocy to think of raising a baby together."

"But they baby won't be here for six months, will it?" Rodolphus asked with a small grin. "So by the time you get it, you'll have been dating for seven months."

"What will you do?" Lucius said.

"I don't know." Severus sighed again. "I told him I'd consider it."

38-38-38

Draco was B.O.R.E.D, bored. It was almost dinner time and Dumbledore's trial was still going, mostly because of the irritating lawyer who seemed to argue against every little thing that was said. When his Father had first told him and Teddy that they were allowed to attend the trial he had been thrilled, but now he was wishing he hadn't asked to attend at all.

Thankfully they seemed to have almost finished presenting the final evidence against Dumbledore, a report from Gringotts about their investigation into Dumbledore's habit of siphoning money from the Hogwarts' vault into one of his own.

"Thank you, Gornuk." Lord Kirke nodded to the Goblin who had finished presenting his report.

The Goblin bowed slightly with a sneer before returning to his seat beside the Goblin Ambassador.

There was a long pause while Lord Kirke and Madame Bones conferred quietly, before Lord Kirke stood up.

"Nobleman Dumbledore, you have heard the evidence against you. Is there anything you wish to say before the Wizengamot decides on your guilt?"

Dumbledore stood up, ignoring his lawyer who was obviously advising him to be quiet. "Yes, I do."

Lord Kirke frowned slightly, but nodded his permission and sat down.

"I will admit that I have made some mistakes." Dumbledore began. "But nothing I did was for selfish reasons. Everything I have done was for the Greater Good. I have spent my life protecting the Wizarding World from Dark Lords. I personally defeated Grindelwald over sixty years ago, and I was the one who made the temporary defeat of Voldemort possible. Members of the Wizengamot, you are being lied to." Dumbledore declared. "Voldemort is not dead, the wizard who attacked the Department of Mysteries in June was not an impersonator. The Dark Lord Voldemort is still alive and he is here in this room!"

There was a long pause before the entire chamber was filled with shouts of denial, panic, confusion and anger.

Lord Kirke stood up and shouted for the room to be silent, before turning towards Dumbledore. "Stop stirring up trouble, Dumbledore."

Dumbledore shook his head and looked around the chamber mournfully. "Everything I am saying is the truth. I wish it wasn't, but it is. Voldemort is alive!"

"If what you say is true, then prove it." Lord Kirke called.

"The first time I met him, his name was Thomas Riddle." Dumbledore announced. "But I believe that he now goes my the name of Thomas Slytherin."

"Fuck! What the hell is that bloody woman doing?"

Draco looked towards his Father in shock, never having heard him swear quite so vehemently.

"Nonsense." Professor McGonagall called out, her voice magically amplified. "Don't be ridiculous, Albus."

Dumbledore looked shocked. "But, Minerva..."

"You forget that I knew Tom Riddle also, Dumbledore." McGonagall told him. "As did Madame Bones. Duke Slytherin is no more You-Know-Who than I am. He's a very agreeable man."

Lord Kirke looked between McGonagall and Dumbledore for a moment before turning to Madame Bones. "Do you agree with Noblewoman McGonagall, Madame Bones?"

"I do." Madame Bones nodded briskly. "I was in Slytherin with Tom Riddle, and while I will admit that Duke Slytherin does bear him a slight resemblance he is certainly not Tom Riddle. Do you honestly believe that I would allow You-Know-Who to court me, Albus? You must be senile!"

"Very well." Lord Kirke looked relieved as he turned towards where Duke Slytherin was sitting. "My apologies, Duke Slytherin, for the slander you have heard in this chamber today."

Duke Slytherin stood up and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Lord Kirke."

"Your graces, Minister, my lords, noblemen, members of the Wizengamot. Do you wish for time to confer, or are you read to cast your vote immediately." Lord Kirke called out.

"I am ready." Lord Lestrange called out.

"I am also." Professor McGonagall nodded

Within seconds every member of the Wizengamot seemed to agree.

"Very well." Lord Kirke nodded. "Because of the number of charges levied against the Nobleman we will be collecting your votes differently than usual. A parchment will appear in front of you, please fill it in and then tap it with your wand."

As the parchments appeared in the section of the chamber where the Wizengamot Members sat, Draco looked down at Dumbledore, who seemed to be trying to shout at them under a silencing spell, and smirked. He couldn't wait to see the old man lead away in chains.

"Are you disappointed that you don't get to vote?" Teddy asked their Father.

"Not particularly." Their Father replied. "Harry would have let me if I wanted to. It's more restful here."

"It helps make Père look extra powerful too." Draco pointed out. "Will he always vote for you?"

"He isn't voting for me." Their Father disagreed. "If I was voting, I would be voting for him. He is Lord Malfoy."

Draco frowned slightly. "I know. But you were Lord Malfoy for so long. Isn't it hard to give up?"

His Father turned to look at him. "When you think about the fact that you will be Consort Malfoy instead of Lord do you feel upset? Or disappointed?"

"Of course not." Draco denied. "Charlie is the dominant. Of course he should be the Lord."

His Father just raised his eyebrows and Draco laughed slightly.

"Oh, right." He turned towards his mate who was sitting on his other side. "Are you looking forward to being a member of the Wizengamot?" He teased. "Being a Lord and having to be proper all the time?"

Charlie grimaced. "Not really. But I'm getting used to the idea. And I have at least two years until Harry steps aside."

"Your attention please." Lord Kirke called out, his voice magically amplified. Once the room was silent he stood up and turned to face Dumbledore. "Nobleman Dumbledore, for the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Augustine Hooch, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Constantine Yaxley, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Peter Olive, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Andrea Thomson, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Benjamin Murphy, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Rebecca Slint, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Marcus Hitchens, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Peter Wilson, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Darrell Blishwick, Heir Presumptive of the Aged Aristocratic House of McLaggen, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Amanda Monty, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Penelope Carter, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Criminally Negligent Manslaughter resulting in the death of Cedric Diggory, Heir Apparent of the Aged and Aristocratic House of Diggory, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Use of an Unforgivable against Peter Pettigrew, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Accessory to the Murder of James Potter, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Accessory to the Murder of Lily Potter, Lady of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On all twelves counts of Use of an Unforgivable against Peter Pettigrew, resulting in the death of a muggle, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Obstruction of Justice, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.

"On the count of Theft, the Wizengamot finds you guilty."

As the chamber was filled yet again with noise, Draco couldn't help the smirk on his face, and when he looked across the chamber he saw that his Père was smirking too. Dumbledore was looking furious.

"It's getting late." Lord Kirke said after he had regained the Wizengamot's attention. "I think it would be best if we meet again tomorrow to sentence Nobleman Dumbledore."

"Lord Kirke?" The Ambassador Goblin stood up.

"Ambassador Eargit the Ugly." Lord Kirke nodded.

"According the treaty between the Goblin Nation and the Ministry of Wizarding Britain, any wizard that is found guilty of Theft that in anyway involves Gringotts bank, is to be handed over to the Goblin Nation for beheading."

"Fuck he's clever." Charlie muttered.

"What?" Draco turned towards his mate.

"Harry must have arranged this." Charlie explained. "He and Bill have been meeting with the Goblins recently. I had been wondering why they bothered charging him with the Theft at all. Heck, he'd barely get six months in Azkaban for it, which is nothing compared to the number of life sentences he's got coming."

Draco frowned, confused. "So it isn't in the treaty?"

"'Course it is." Charlie replied. "But the Goblins only really bother with the really big robberies. Normally the Goblins wouldn't give a fuck about one little count of Theft."

Lord Kirke was looking completely surprised and was looking between Dumbledore, the Goblin and Madame Bones.

Eargit the Ugly grinned. "In which case any additional sentencing of Dumbledore will not be needed, Lord Kirke. We will take him with us this evening, and will deliver you his body in the morning."

38-38-38

"Did you see his face?" Charlie crowed. "I don't think that he had even considered the fact that he might be found in guilty, let alone beheaded by the Goblins."

"Yes, we all saw his face." Bill replied with a grin. "We were all there, Charlie."

"That lawyer was awful!" Percy complained loudly to Rodolphus. "She drew the entire thing out and then couldn't even manage the one job she was given."

"True." Fred called from down the table.

"But wasn't McGonagall brilliant?!" George added.

"I can't believe she defended Duke Slytherin like that." Neville agreed shooting a slightly apologetic look down the table to Tom.

"She was rather brilliant." Madame Bones said quietly. "Light witches aren't all so bad, are they, Tom?"

Tom just scowled, but Harry thought it was rather half-hearted for the wizard.

"How are you feeling?" Harry asked Lucius quietly, ignoring the rest of the table for a moment.

"Exhausted." Lucius sighed. "I still haven't recovered from last week. Everything is just building up."

"Perhaps you should consider staying here at the Manor for a few days at least?" Harry suggested. "It'll be far more restful than Hogwarts."

Lucius sighed and frowned but nodded. "It might be a good idea. You'll be alright with the Slytherins?"

Harry laughed. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure I've won most of them over by now."

"Did you hear that Bill has asked Sev to raise Ginny's baby with him?" Lucius asked.

"What? No, I hadn't. What did Severus say?"

"That he'd think about it. He's pretty confused about it all. They've only been dating a month."

"That's understandable. Everyone can't be as awesome as us. Adopting a new kid the day after we properly met."

Lucius laughed lightly. "No they can't. But we had our creature inheritances to help us out. We knew we were destined for one another."

Harry grinned and leaned towards his mate to kiss him. "That we are."

"Ewww!" Both Teddy and Draco were calling down the table. "Don't be gross!"

Harry laughed and kissed Lucius again before replying. "Don't act as though I haven't walked in on you two and your respective partners more times than I can count."

"Really?" Fred asked.

"You've walked in on Charlie here?" George added.

"Where?"

"Doing what?"

"When?"

"Give us all the details! Please!" They chorused together.

"Only if you're ok with me giving your brother the details of that time in the Quidditch Shed." Harry replied with a smirk.

"Never mind." The twins chorused quickly.

"What time in the Quidditch Shed?" Neville asked. "Why wasn't I there."

"You have to tell us now, Harry!" Charlie said.

"Lets just say." Harry said with a smirk. "That at the young innocent age of thirteen I learnt to knock whenever I went into the Quidditch Shed. There are some things a Second Year doesn't need to see!"

"The Quidditch Shed, huh?" Neville asked the twins with a grin. "Wanna recreate the scene someday. Without Harry of course." He added with smirk down the table.

"If I catch anyone doing anything in any part of the castle there will be detentions all around!" Severus declared with a scowl.

"Don't tell me you never did something, somewhere in Hogwarts?" Bill teased his boyfriend.

"Sure he did." Rodolphus called from his seat beside Arthur. "Only he preferred the Potion Storage Room."

"Really?" Bill looked thrilled. "Maybe we should do some scene recreating of our own, Sev."

"Ewwww!" The twins called out together.

"If we catch either of you,"

"Doing anything,"

"In any part of the castle."

"There will be pranks all around!" They finished together.

38-38-38

I'd just like to clarify something because I have been getting a lot of questions about it. In this particular AU version of the Harry Potter World, Hogwarts' students start at the age of 12 instead of 11. Which is how Harry is seventeen, when he should only be sixteen.


	39. Chapter 39

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

I know this is early, but I figure that you guys probably don't mind that much.

There is only one chapter to go and I'll post it later this week, probably on Thursday like I normally do.

Thanks for reading

39-39-39

"You're never going to guess what happened at the Ministry this morning."

Severus looked up from his paper and scowled at Harry who had, yet again, managed to get into his office without setting off any of the alarms. When his scowl didn't garner a reaction from the younger wizard, Severus decided instead to ignore him. He looked back at the paper in his hand and restarted the paragraph he had been reading.

Harry, however, didn't seem to need any encouragement. "The Goblins, wonderful little creatures that they are, delivered Dumbledore's body to the front desk."

"What?" Severus looked up.

"A group of five Goblins just turned up, levitating Dumbledore's headless body between them, and handed the body and small crate containing his head, to the guards."

Severus couldn't help but laugh at that. "Merlin! Really? What did the guards do?"

Harry sat down in one of the seats on the other side of his desk and smirked gleefully. "They summoned their supervisor, who summoned an Auror, who summoned his supervisor, who summoned Madame Bones. All the while the corpse was laying on the desk and people kept coming to have a look."

"And Madame Bones?"

"She reprimanded them all and arranged for the body to be stored until a burial can be arranged."

Severus chuckled, imagining the scene.

"So," Harry leaned forward seriously. "Lucius told me about Bill's suggestion."

Severus scowled immediately. "And?"

"Nothing." Harry shook his head. "I just wanted to let you know that you have my support no matter your decision. If you do decide to take in the baby, then it shouldn't be because you feel pressured into it." He shrugged. "I know that the Weasley's can be rather overwhelming at times."

"I can handle them." Severus sneered. "I'm not so easily influenced."

"I know that." Harry shook his head with a small grin. "Trust me, Severus. I don't think anyone who has ever met you, would presume to think that you were easily influenced. I just wanted to let you know that you have my support."

Severus nodded briskly. "Thank you. Lucius informed me last night that he has decided to stay at Malfoy Manor for some time?"

"Yes." Harry thankfully allowed the change in subject. "There's been a lot going on in the last few weeks, and he's exhausted. We thought a few days at home would do him some good. I'll visit him every day."

"And you are comfortable taking on the role of Head of Slytherin in Lucius' absence?"

"Of course. I've been helping Lucius out a lot in the last few weeks any way." Harry replied. "Speaking of which, Severus, since I'm covering all of Lucius' classes, I was wondering whether maybe Charlie could take some of my Muggle Defence classes. Just until Lucius is better."

Severus sighed. "I take it Charlie isn't opposed to the idea?"

"No," Harry shrugged. "He's been attending most of my senior classes anyway. He enjoys the work out. And he'll only take the ones that fit into his schedule."

"What about your schedule?"

"I've been using a timeturner." Harry replied. "It's working well enough, and it's not as though I'm not used to using time manipulation."

Severus nodded, remembering that Harry had been using time manipulation in the Room of Requirement since he was thirteen. "That's fine."

Harry stood up. "Thank you. I think I'll go and tell Minerva the story next. She'll enjoy it I think."

"How did you hear it?"

"Oh, you know." Harry smirked. "One of my numerous spies that I have hidden all over the world."

Severus rolled his eyes. "Before you go, I received a letter this morning. Miss Granger's parents have decided to pull her out of Hogwarts, effective immediately. They ask that I arrange for her to be transported home today. It would seem that she is no longer content with her education at Hogwarts and has decided to transfer to an American school."

"Really?" Harry chuckled. "Thank Merlin. She was really pissing me off. Makes sense though. Dumbledore's dead, Ron's going to be in Azkaban for a few years. She put all her dixie eggs in one basket and then I blew it up. How will you be getting her home?"

"I'm going to ask Minerva to Apparate her there. Could you tell her that I need to see her after having told her your story?"

"Of course." Harry replied heading towards the door with a large grin on his face.

39-39-39

Three and a half weeks later, Lucius watched as Harry cast Tempus for what seemed like the hundreth time before pacing the length of the room again. It was finally Halloween and Severus had promised to bring the finished potion to their rooms.

"He'll be here soon." Lucius pointed out. "Pacing isn't going to do anything. And watching you is making me feel tired."

Harry moved to sit on the couch beside him. "Sorry, love. He tested it right? The potion I mean. It won't hurt you."

"Yes, he tested it." Lucius rolled his eyes. "Well as much as he could, anyway. It's not as though there were other wizards suffering from the curse that he could test it on first."

"Then how does he know it will work?" Harry asked.

Lucius sighed, this was the fifth time they had had this conversation. "He's really, very, good at what he does, Harry. Sev's spent years learning what different potion ingredients do when combined. As well as the Arithmetic Formulas for different potions. Where are the boys?"

Harry's knee was jiggling stressfully, but he allowed the distraction. "They're at the Halloween Party."

"I thought they wanted to watch."

"They did. But I managed to convince them that it would all be very boring and that we would let them know what happened."

"Why?" Lucius asked confused.

Harry smirked. "Well, a mixture between Severus not wanting them here while he's working and me wanting some private time with you the minute you're better."

"What?" Lucius laughed. "You want to have sex tonight?"

"Are you kidding? Of course I want to have sex tonight." Harry grinned. "Severus said that you would have your normal, healthy, level of energy within ten minutes of taking the potion. It's ten o'clock at night. You have to use up the energy somehow."

Lucius shook his head in disbelief. "Most of the time I completely forget how young you are, and then times like this..."

"What?" Harry asked with his eyebrows raised challengingly. "You're telling me you don't want to have sex tonight? That's a pity, I was thinking about having you ride me."

Lucius bit his lip in arousal at the images his imagination produced.

"Exactly." Harry smirked as their door bell went off. "I'll get it."

Lucius watched as his mate almost ran to their portrait door, flinging it open, before gesturing for Severus to enter.

"Oh good. You're here."

Severus scowled briefly in Harry's direction as he moved to sit on the chair opposite Lucius. "Of course I'm here. I said I would be here before ten thirty, and it's only just past ten. Now sit down."

Lucius watched as Harry rolled his eyes at the older wizard before returning to his seat beside Lucius.

"Do you have the potion?"

Severus scowled again. "Of course I have the bloody potion. Maybe, if you're quiet long enough, I'll even explain how to administer it and we can heal Lucius."

"Go ahead." Harry grinned slightly. "I'm not stopping you."

Severus' sigh was loud and irritated but he turned his attention to Lucius. "It's all rather simple, ridiculously so. All you have to do is drink the potion in one mouthful."

"And you're sure it'll work?" Harry asked. "And that it's safe?"

"Of course I'm sure." Severus snapped. "Lucius is important to me too, Potter, and he's been important to me for a hell of a lot longer than you've been alive. I wouldn't risk his safety for anything."

"I'm allowed to be worried." Harry replied heatedly. "This potion hasn't be used on a wizard before. I'm allowed to be a little freaked out that my mate is about to drink an experimental potion. I'm not doubting you, Severus. I'm just a little anxious."

"I know." Severus allowed before standing up and handing Lucius a small potion vial from his pocket.

"And all I have to do is drink it?" Lucius asked, ignoring Harry's hand that was worriedly gripping his thigh.

"In one mouthful." Severus instructed.

"Alright." Lucius popped the top of the vial and held it to his mouth for a moment before lowering it and turning to kiss Harry lightly on the lips. "I love you, and I'm going to be fine."

"I know." Harry nodded, his leg jiggling again. "I love you too. Now, just drink it."

Lucius threw back his head and downed the potion in one gulp. When he didn't feel anything immediately he frowned.

"Nothing's happening."

"Give it a moment." Severus said. "All you'll feel is a warmth in your muscles."

"Oh." Lucius nodded and then relaxed against the couch as he began to feel the warmth. "I feel it now."

"How long will it last?" Harry asked, seeming much calmer since Lucius hadn't immediately dropped dead or started seizing and foaming at the mouth.

"It depends on how long Lucius was under the curse while it was active." Severus replied. "How long between when Rabastan first cursed you and when I gave you the potion, Luc?"

"Maybe seven minutes?" Lucius guessed. "I don't know, I was pretty out of it."

Harry was nodding. "Seven minutes sounds about right. We got there pretty quickly after the Elf told me you had been hurt and you retrieved the potion almost immediately."

"Then it will take about seven minutes." Severus replied.

"And then I'll be all better?" Lucius asked.

"One hundred percent." Severus replied with a small smile.

"I feel better already."

"Really?" Harry asked excitedly. "That's brilliant."

"It'll be gradual." Severus said. "You're regaining energy at the same speed as you lost it."

"It feels amazing." Lucius laughed slightly. "I had forgotten what it felt like to have this much energy."

"And you're only halfway there." Harry pointed out.

"I want to do something." Lucius said. "Something like run around the castle. Maybe I'll go to one of your Muggle Defence classes tomorrow."

"We're going to do something, remember?" Harry asked with a smirk. "I'll even let you do all the work."

Lucius laughed again at the grimace on Severus' face. "Don't be a prude, Sev. It's not as though you aren't getting any."

Severus scowled. "We're not talking about my sex life."

"Don't be such a bore, Sev." Lucius teased with a smirk.

Severus scowled again before his expression softened slightly. "It's good to have this side of you back, Luc."

39-39-39

The instant that Severus was sure that the potion had done it's job and that Lucius was fully recovered, Harry pushed him out of their rooms with instructions to 'please inform the boys that everything went well.'

Once they were alone again Lucius began to quickly unbutton his robe as he moved into their bedroom.

"You've changed your tune." Harry laughed as he followed him into the bedroom. "What's got you so eager?"

Lucius shrugged his unbuttoned robe off his shoulders and began to undo his shirt under it. "I feel amazing! I had forgotten what it felt like." He shrugged his shirt off before looking across to Harry, who was still undoing his robe. "Besides, you promised I could ride you."

Harry laughed again as he undid the last button on his robe. "You like that idea, huh?"

39-39-39

This scene has been removed because it is rated NC-17. You can find the unedited version of this chapter on AO3. The link is on my profile page.

39-39-39

"How's your Father?"

Draco slowed slightly as Daphne fell into step beside him. "Good, I think. Uncle Severus told us that everything went well and that Father was feeling like normal. Before the curse normal."

"You didn't see him after?"

"No. Uncle Severus didn't want us there when Father took the potion, just in case something went wrong. And afterwards he said that Father and Père wanted some privacy and that they would see us in the morning."

"Some privacy?" Daphne tilted her head the side in slight confusion.

"Yes, Daph, privacy." Draco smirked. "You seem when two wizards love each other very much and one of them has been too tired to do much for months and months. They want to reaquaint themselves with one another."

Daphne's nose wrinkled slightly in obvious annoyance. "Oh stop it. But didn't you want to be there? Just to make sure your Father was alright?"

Draco shrugged. "Maybe a little. But Uncle Severus said that everything was fine, and if we had been there they would have been all flirty and gross. I have no desire to spend the evening with my parents when they are eyefucking. It's weird."

"Ahem."

Draco could feel himself begin to blush as he saw both his Father and his Père standing barely two feet away.

"Good morning, Draconis." His Father greeted him with eyebrows raised.

"Good morning, Father." Draco winced as he took in his Père's amused and devilish expression. "I am glad to see that you are well. How was your evening?"

"Oh it was wonderful." His Père answered with a smirk. "I had almost forgotten how energetic and flexible your Father could be."

Draco grimaced and glared slightly at Daphne who laughing quietly.

"Good morning, Miss Greengrass."

"Good morning, Duke Peverell." Daphne curtsied lowly first to Draco's Père and then to his Father. "May I express my relief for your sake that you are again of full health, Consort Peverell."

"Thank you, Miss Greengrass." His Father nodded his head regally in response before turning to his Père. "Shall we go to breakfast?"

"As you wish."

The moment his parents were gone Draco turned towards Daphne with a teasing smirk. "Suck up!"

Daphne gasped in mock horror. "Well I never! Master Malfoy, I can't believe you would think such a thing of me."

"Consort Peverell?" Draco questioned disbelievingly. "Since when have you called him that?"

"I've been doing some reading." Daphne replied as she began to move towards the Great Hall. "And then I spoke to Marcus. According to the proper protocol everyone should have begun to call your Father that the minute he and Duke Peverell were bonded. By not doing so, I was expressing disrespect to their bond."

"Really?" Draco frowned. That meant there were an awful lot of people who supposedly had no respect for his parents' bond.

"Well technically. In reality I think they are all simply getting used to the change and have forgotten. It's not as though proper pureblooded protocol is used that often these days."

"True. But Père and Duke Slytherin are trying to remedy that to some degree."

"I know. Maybe your Père decided to choose his battles. But once I read it, and confirmed it with Marcus, I couldn't stand the thought that your parents might think that I didn't respect them."

"So Marcus knew about it?" Draco frowned again. "But he's been calling Father, Lord Malfoy."

"No. But I asked him to read the section of the text, just to ensure that it was saying what I thought it was saying." Daphne answered as they arrived at the section of table where Blaise and Teddy were already sitting.

"What what was saying?" Blaise asked as they sat across from their two friends.

"Which text?" Teddy asked at the same time. "Is it good?"

"Ravenclaw." Blaise mocked teasingly.

"I was reading Zachariah Winbow's Degrees of Proper Protocol and apparently the moment Duke Peverell was bonded everyone should have begun to address Lord Malfoy as Consort Peverell. And by not addressing him as such, people have been inadvertently expressing disrespect towards their bond."

"Really?" Blaise glanced up at the staff table with a horrified expression. "Do you think they know that?"

"Of course they do." Teddy scoffed. "This is Father and Père we're talking about. Between them, they know pretty much everything."

"But, I've never called him Consort Peverell! I didn't mean anything, I just didn't know. What if they..."

"They know you don't mean anything by it." Draco interrupted him. "If they had thought you were trying to be offensive Père would have told you."

"Why didn't they?" Blaise asked. "If I'd known, I never would have called him that. And your Father introduced himself as Professor Malfoy when he started teaching here."

"Perhaps they simply decided they had more important things to worry about." Daphne suggested again. "Besides it makes it an awful lot easier to have a Professor Peverell and a Professor Malfoy. At least with the Lewis' you can say 'the female Lewis', what would we end up calling your parents? The tall Peverell? The short Peverell?"

"Ahem."

This time it was Daphne who was flushing when she realised that Draco's parents had overheard her. Draco sniggered.

"Well," His Père smirked. "I have to admit Miss Greengrass that I much prefer it when you call me Duke Peverell, and my Consort, Consort Peverell, than when we are simply 'the tall and short Peverell's."

"My deepest apologies, your grace." Daphne bit her lip nervously.

"Mine also, your grace." Blaise stood up and turned around so that he was facing the two wizards. "For any offence I may have cause when I referred to your Consort as Lord Malfoy. I swear that I did not mean it maliciously. My mistake was made purely out of ignorance." He bowed first to Draco's Père and then two his Father. "I am sorry, Consort Peverell."

"Oh, sit down, Blaise." His Father said exasperatedly. "If I had been offended I would have corrected you. I was Lord Malfoy for over twenty years, I am aware that an adjustment period is needed before people become accustomed to my new title."

"You're looking better, Father." Teddy said. "I was so glad when Uncle Severus informed us that you were well."

"I am well." Draco's Father smiled broadly. "Your Père and I would have invited you over for supper last night, but we didn't want to subject you to our, what did you call it, Draco? Our 'eyefucking'?"

Draco groaned and blushed again. "I am so sorry, Father. I didn't know you were there."

"That much was obvious, Draco." His Père smirked. "Now stop apologising all of you. Lucius and are not nearly so easily offended as you seem to think. You should eat quickly, Draco, the bell will chime in just a few minutes. You were late for breakfast."

"So were you." Draco returned.

"Yeah, well." His Père smirked lazily. "I had an eventful night."

Draco groaned. "Père!"

39-39-39


	40. Chapter 40

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all of it's characters, belong to J.K. Rowling. I own none of it.

Thanks to my wonderful Beta, Sounding Board, and sister – Kakariki – without her this story wouldn't have been possible.

Thanks for reading

40-40-40

"A vote is being held during tomorrow's Wizengamot Session," Lucius informed his Year Six Politics Class, five weeks after the curse had been lifted. "There have been four sessions held in the last two months, each of which was primarily focussed on the new Werewolf Bill that was introduced by both Duke Slytherin and Duke Peverell. That is why Duke Peverell is here today. His grace is going to explain the Bill to you and then answer your questions."

"Firstly," Harry started. "What can you tell me about the current laws concerning Werewolves?"

Daphne Greengrass was the first student to raise her hand.

"Yes?" Harry prompted.

"Killing a transformed Werewolf isn't illegal."

"True." Harry nodded. "Draco?"

"They can't have an job that would cause them to interact with more than ten uninfected humans on a daily basis."

"Also true. Mr. Boot."

"Werewolves aren't allowed to receive medical treatment in public hospitals such as St. Mungo's."

"Yes. Miss Bones?"

"They aren't allowed to attend school with uninfected humans."

"Blaise?"

"They aren't eligible for any kind of aid, financial or otherwise, from the Ministry."

"Teddy?"

"They aren't allowed to handle potions or food that will be consumed by uninfected wizards."

"Neville?"

"They aren't allowed to be legally bonded."

"Miss Abbott?"

"If a Werewolf is found guilty of a crime they automatically get an extra three years added to their sentence."

"Draco?"

"If they infect any one else, either on purpose or by accident, they receive an automatic death sentence."

"Alright." Harry paused for a moment. "Which of those laws do you personally think are unreasonable?"

"All of them." Teddy said firmly. "Werewolves aren't that different from us most of the time."

"But the one that makes it illegal for them to infect people isn't that unfair." Terry Boot argued.

"But what if the person wanted it?" Teddy countered. "If a person was slowly dying of poison or a disease and the bite of a Werewolf could help them, shouldn't that be their choice?"

"I don't think the one allowing us to kill a transformed Werewolf is unfair." Draco said. "What if they attack you?"

"But what if you kill a Werewolf that was taking Wolfsbane?" Daphne argued. "Wouldn't it just be better to stun it?"

"Not even just if he was taking Wolfsbane." Neville said. "The Werewolf could be the nicest person when they're untransformed. If you can incapacitate a Werewolf without killing him, you should."

"Good." Harry smiled at them. "Those are all good points. The new legislation that Duke Slytherin and I have introduced with change a lot of things for Werewolves. In fact each of the laws that you mentioned will be changed at least a little. It will be illegal for employers to discriminate against Werewolves when they are hiring new staff, and there will be no limitations on what kind of employment that they can have.

"While infecting someone without their consent will still be illegal, the punishment won't always be a death sentence. They will have the same rights as a uninfected witch or wizard, including their right to be treated at a public hospital, attend a public school, receive aid from the Ministry, and be legally bonded.

"Also, the only time that killing a transformed Werewolf will be legal, is if it is clearly provem that it was the last possible resort."

"What about the extra punishment they get, your grace?" Daphne Greengrass asked.

"That falls under the equal rights section." Harry answered. "So it will be abolished. There are a lot of other parts to the Bill, but one of the major ones that I haven't mentioned is that Wolfsbane will be almost completely subsidised by the Ministry."

"Won't that cost a lot?" Terry Boot asked.

"Yes. But the Ministry already subsidises a lot of other potions much less vital than Wolfsbane and Duke Slytherin and I both agreed that it was one of our priorities."

"Why did you choose this particular issue, Duke Peverell?" Hannah Abbott asked. "Was it because of Professor Lupin."

"Partly." Harry admitted. "Knowing a Werewolf certainly helped. But I wouldn't say that I have chosen this issue in particular. Duke Slytherin and I already have five other Bills that we are writing. We plan to introduce them after Christmas."

"What are they about?" Daphne Greengrass asked.

"Goblin relations, our Legal System, filling the permanently empty seats in the Wizengamot, Veela relations, and the Ministry's policy on Dark magic."

"Dark magic?" Terry Boot asked with a frown. "What about it?"

"We will talk about that after the Christmas holidays." Lucius cut in smoothly. "Does any one have any questions remaining about the Werewolf Bill?"

"You seem very confident that it will pass, your grace." Susan Bones said. "How can you be so sure?"

"There are different factions within the Wizengamot." Harry started. "They're unofficial of course, but they're there none the less. Last year there were three large ones. Dumbledore's group, Consort Peverell's group, and Nobleman Fudge's group. Does any one have any guessing about what they are now?"

"Well, Father's group was also sort of the Slytherin group." Draco said. "So they'll be Duke Slytherin's group now, right?"

"I imagine the Dumbledore's group has mostly split now." Daphne Greengrass mused. "But then they were sort of the intensely Light group, and Minister Shacklebolt is openly Light and so is Madame Bones."

"Yes they are." Harry nodded. "What about Nobleman Fudge's group?"

"They're the power seekers right?" Susan Bones asked. "So they will go to whoever they think has the most power."

"Right." Harry agreed. "So why do you think I'm so confident?"

"Well you obviously have Duke Slytherin's group." Blaise said. "Since he's one of the authors of the Bill."

"I know that my Aunt is very supportive of Werewolf Rights." Susan added. "So she'll definitely be voting for the Bill. What does the Minister think?"

"The Minister will be voting for the Bill." Harry told her.

"So you have Dumbledore's old faction then." Susan Bones concluded.

"What about the Chief Warlock?" Terry Boot asked.

"Lord Kirke thinks it's a wonderful Bill." Harry said.

"So the five most important people in the Wizengamot will be voting 'yay'." Hannah Abbot said. "Which means that you will have the power seekers votes too."

"The five most important?" Terry Boot frowned.

"Duke Peverell, Duke Slytherin, Minister Shacklebolt, Lord Kirke,and Madame Bones." Teddy explained.

"But..." Terry started before stopping.

"Go ahead." Harry encouraged.

"No offence intended, your grace. But you don't actually have a group."

"True." Harry nodded.

Blaise laughed loudly. "He is a group, Boot. Duke Peverell is the highest ranking member of the Wizengamot and has sixteen votes all to himself. Fudge's group barely has sixteen votes combined."

"There are other Wizengamot Members too though, aren't there?" Daphne Greengrass questioned. "They can't all fit into those three groups."

"You're absolutely right." Harry agreed. "But maybe seventy percent of the Wizengamot do fit within those three groups, which is why I am so confident that the Bill will pass tomorrow."

40-40-40

"Harry! Harry!"

Harry stopped in the middle of Apparation Area at the Ministry and looked around for whoever was calling out his name. It was just past the Hogwarts' lunch hour and now that the Wizengamot vote was out of the way he really needed to get back to the school.

"Harry!" Remus jogged towards him.

"Remus." Harry greeted the older wizard coolly. "I didn't realise you were here today. Did you observe the Wizengamot Session?"

"I wanted to see what would happen." Remus replied. "There were rather a few of my kind in the Observation Area. Thank you, Harry!"

"I didn't do it for you." Harry told him. "I'll admit that knowing you was what made it clear that laws needed to change, but I did it for all Werewolves."

"I know." Remus nodded sadly. "I've made a lot of mistakes in regards to you, Harry. I should have done more for your in your Third Year, and then in your Fourth Year. And I should have tried to contact you last summer. I'm sorry for letting you down."

"I didn't expect anything from you, Remus, so you didn't let me down." Harry sighed. "Yes, you could have done more, but I didn't need you too. I've done rather well for myself without any help from you."

Remus sighed sadly. "Yes, you have. I'm so proud of you, Harry. Your parents would be so proud of you too."

"Thank you." Harry smiled wistfully. He didn't know whether that was true, but it was certainly nice to hear.

"I know that you hardly know me." Remus said, fidgeting slightly. "And you certainly don't need me. But I would like to get to know you better. Could we maybe have lunch sometime?"

Harry considered the question for a moment. What could it hurt? Besides which Remus could become a helpful ally. He was one of the best educated Werewolves in Britain.

"Sure. I'll owl you sometime in January. You should know that there's a good chance that I'll bring Lucius."

Remus grimaced slightly but nodded. "Alright." He paused. "Are you happy, Harry? Does Malfoy make you happy?"

Harry beamed at him. "He makes me incredibly happy. He's the best thing that ever happened to me."

"Good. And I heard that you adopted both Draco Malfoy and Theodore Nott. Aren't you, a bit young?"

"Sometimes maturity levels have very little to do with age, Remus." Harry replied coldly.

"Y-yes, of course y-you're right." Remus stuttered slightly. "I'm sorry."

"Don't make assumptions about me, Remus. You'll end up disappointed." Harry quickly cast Tempus. "Damn, I'm going to be late. I need to go. I'll owl you."

"Good talking to you, Harry." Remus said quickly. "Thank you again."

Harry nodded briskly and Apparated to Hogwarts.

40-40-40

"Happy Solstice." Harry whispered in Lucius' ear, waking his mate up.

"Happy Solstice." Lucius parroted sleepily before rolling over and burying his face in the pillow.

Harry smirked and gestured for Draco and Teddy to come forward.

"Happy Solstice!" Both their sons shouted and then jumped on their Father's legs.

"Happy Solstice." Lucius moaned before rolling over and pulling himself upright.

Harry pulled Lucius over until his mate was leaning against him, and then waved Charlie and Blaise over.

"Happy Solstice."

"Happy Solstice, Harry."

"Happy Solstice, your grace."

"Grab a seat." Harry instructed them. "The bed's plenty big enough for all of us."

"I still can't believe that you do this." Blaise muttered to Teddy as he found a seat next to him.

"I know." Teddy replied. "That's what I said the first time this happened."

Harry laughed. "I said that too. What about you, Charlie? Are you currently in shock at the thought that the Malfoy's have a breakfast in bed tradition?"

"A little." Charlie grinned as he pulled Draco into his lap. "My family didn't even do this."

"That's because there were nine of you." Draco teased. "You wouldn't have all fitted on a bed."

"Thank you again for allowing me to stay the night, your grace." Blaise said quietly to Harry.

"Not at all." Harry smiled at him. "Christmas is a time for family, and you have certainly become part of ours."

"Thank you." Blaise's voice was watery.

"What he really means to say," Charlie smirked. "Is that he's alright with you staying because he knows at least five different spells and wards that ensure his sons virtue."

"Charlie!" Teddy sounded scandalised.

"What?" Charlie laughed. "It's true. There are spells in your rooms, on you, in the halls. If you and Blaise so much as hold hands between the times of ten at night and seven in the morning Harry knows about it."

"Really?" Teddy asked, both he and Blaise were blushing bright red. "So you know about...?"

"Yes, I do." Harry frowned slightly. "And we'll be talking about it tomorrow. You too, Draco," Harry told his other son who had been openly laughing at his brother's fate. "I am perfectly aware that you were covering for them."

"Draco!" Charlie was obviously trying for chastising but he was too busy chuckling.

"But right now it's Solstice." Lucius said firmly. "And we're going to have a Solstice breakfast, and then we are going to open gifts, and then our friends and families are coming over."

"Exactly." Harry nodded his agreement before pinning both his sons and Blaise with a glare. "But there will be words tomorrow."

"Yes, Père."

"Sorry, Père."

"Yes, your grace."

"Guppy!" Lucius called.

"Consort Peverell be calling Guppy?" The Elf that appeared asked excitedly.

"Happy Solstice, Guppy." Harry put in.

"Oh!" Guppy's ears quivered. "Oh! Duke Peverelly is being so kind to Guppy!"

"Bring the trays." Lucius commanded with an exasperated look towards Harry.

Barely a minute later the breakfast trays had arrived and had been handed out.

"We have two thing to tell you." Lucius told the four wizards sitting at the end of his bed after they had all been eating for a few minutes.

"Firstly, Bill and Severus have decided to raise Ginny's baby together." Harry said. "Bill will be moving into the Headmaster's quarters at Hogwarts this week."

"Really?" Draco asked, he twisted around to look at Charlie. "Did you know that?"

"Yeah." Charlie replied sheepishly.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because your parents wanted to be the ones to tell you." Charlie told him. "They only made the decision yesterday, Dray. It's not as though I've known for weeks."

"Oh." Draco looked mostly appeased. "That's awesome though. Uncle Sev's going to have a kid!"

"A little girl." Lucius corrected. "Arthur has been attending Ginny's Healer appointments with her and they found out the gender a few days ago."

"Are they going to be bonded?" Teddy asked.

"I suspect so." Lucius nodded. "But they have no definite plans at the moment."

"What was the second thing?" Charlie asked.

"I'm pregnant." Lucius beamed at them. "We found out about a week ago, but we didn't want to tell you until I was at least eight weeks pregnant."

"Why eight weeks?" Teddy asked curiously.

"Because it's pretty common for there to be problems with the pregnancy before then that magic can't fix." Harry replied. "After eight weeks though most things can prevented or fixed by potions."

"Eight weeks?" Charlie grinned? "And you stopped casting the contraceptive spell what? Eight weeks and two days ago? Goodness, people will start to wonder whether you're secretly a Weasley if you're that fertile."

"Shut up." Draco groaned. "We are not talking about my parents fertility!"

"We're going to get a sister?" Teddy asked with a broad smile?

"Or a brother." Draco pointed out.

"Or both?" Charlie smirked. "What with your newly discovered awesome fertility you could even get two of each."

"Charlie!"

"Are the twins trying?" Harry asked Charlie curiously. "You think your parents had lots of kids? Think of poor Neville. He has two Weasley Bearers."

"Fuck!" Charlie laughed. "I hadn't thought of that. But, no, they don't want kids until Neville's out of school. So their first kids will probably be about the same age as Draco and mine."

"What about you, Teddy? Blaise?" Draco teased. "When are you going to have kids? Before or after you leave Hogwarts?"

"After!" Teddy babbled quickly. "Definitely after! And after we've bonded for sure. Because there would be no chance of us getting pregnant before then. None at all!"

"Sure, sure." Draco smirked. "I think the witch doth protest too much."

"Piss off."

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The End

40-40-40

This is the last chapter of Formans Familias. I really hope that you have enjoyed it.

There won't be a sequel, sorry. I simply can't even begin to fathom what I would write it about.


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